


She Broke Your Throne and She Cut Your Hair

by Panda_Valentine



Category: X-Men (Comicverse)
Genre: F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-23
Updated: 2017-01-23
Packaged: 2018-09-01 14:56:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 38,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8628712
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Panda_Valentine/pseuds/Panda_Valentine
Summary: Lorna's type was always blonde haired, blue eyed American boys with as many issues as she had. She really had no idea what to do with a blue haired, blonde eyed German acrobat.





	1. "Beer!"

“What!? Why?”

She really hadn't meant to sound so shrill. She had simply never been particularly good at controlling her emotions and, right now, her primary emotion was annoyance. 

Polaris's full lips pursed out as Storm looked down at her. “Don't I have a say in the matter?”

“Of course you do, Lorna. It is a request. Not an order.” Ororo replied smoothly, clarifying. “As I said, I have formally requested you for my team. To be honest, I believed that you may have been growing bored now that you have returned to the Mansion but, if you are content in your days then by all means, decline me and know that I will bear you no ill on the issue.”

This richly worded and entirely accurate explanation gave Polaris a moment of pause. She was growing bored, having been filling up her days with reading and pacing the Mansion and its grounds restlessly. Something that Storm had no doubt noted. 

What was bothering Polaris was that Storm's team was full of people whom where very close to one another. Lorna had always felt like an outsider, even in rooms full of people who were supposed to be her family. The idea of joining a roster of best-friends made Lorna's stomach feel like it was made of lead.

She had no words to explain this that didn't, in her opinion, make her sound needy and pathetic, however. So she simply shrugged and looked back to her book.

“I am running out of things to read so, I guess.”

“Wonderful.” Ororo smiled as if Polaris' rapid switch from annoyance to apathy wasn't vaguely insulting. 

“Are we doing the matching uniforms thing, or can I just... whatever?” 

“Whatever you feel comfortable being seen in.” Storm said, excusing herself to tell the others on the team the good news. 

At least, Storm hoped it was good news. Whether Lorna's addition to the Gold team proved a benefit or a detriment possibly remained to be seen.

Nightcrawler, Colossus and Shadowcat certainly considered it a boon when Storm found them in the common room and informed them of the addition.

“ _Sehr gut_. A second power house to aid yourself can only be a strategic advantage.” Kurt observed lightly.

“I don't believe I've ever actually been on a team with Polaris before.” Kitty noted. 

“Hmm, I wonder how long I should wait before bringing up the possibility of a reverse fast-ball special” Colossus mused, earning laughter from the others. Storm moved on, although something in the back of her mind kept causing her to replay the conversation as she went in search of Iceman and Cannonball. 

Nightcrawler's reply was bothering her but, for the moment, she couldn't quite put her finger on why.

Bobby and Sam were enjoying a friendly game of pool in the downstairs den. They were being cheered on by Roberto Dacosta and Henry McCoy, who were alternating between that and a football game on the television.

Storm hadn't known the Blue team was in residence but greeted her friends easily all the same.

“Good evening Gentleman. And Hank.” Storm teased. She was still playfully bitter that he had managed to snag both Rogue and Psylocke whilst already having recruited Gambit for his team before she had even had the chance to ask. 

A mistake she had not repeated with Polaris.

“Nards to you too, my dear.” Beast rumbled, amused.

“Miss Storm.” Sam, unfailingly polite, as always, made sure to acknowledge her greeting before turning back to play a particularly difficult shot that he had been lining up for the better part of 30 minutes. Despite Bobby's inept fumbling with a pool cue doing several things to thwart him. 

“I just came to let Bobby and Sam know that Lorna has joined the Gold Team, effective immediately.” 

“You mountebank! I wanted her for Blue.”

“What was that delightful phrase you rewarded me with after acquiring Rogue for Blue side, Henry?” Storm asked, one white eyebrow arched imperiously but a smile on her lips. 

“Probably you-snooze-you-lose.” Sunspot quipped, shooting a lazy grin at Beast.

“Sounds accurate.” Beast grumbled. He had genuinely thought that Lorna would been an excellent addition to the Blue team, which currently lacked a power house. Psylocke's telekinesis was strong and Gambit's kinetic abilities incredibly useful but Lorna could topple buildings.

It was hard to argue with that kind of firepower. Still, he was nothing if not a gracious loser and wished Storm well as she made her leave of the quartet.

“We should go out for drinks.” Iceman commented with ill-amusement as Sam sank 3 pool balls in rapid succession, including the black, and bringing the game to an end with Bobby's defeat. It was his 3rd in a row and he didn't feel like losing a 4th to the younger mutant.

“Capital idea!” Beast enthused, then caught note of the time. “Let me check my samples and I will rendezvous with you all anon.”

“We won't see him for the rest of the evening.” Iceman observed as the massive blue mutant exited the room.

“I, actually, have a date.” Sunspot bragged, standing with a stretch. 

“I hope she has fleas.” Bobby retorted without a lick of malice. He and Sam walked to the main common room where their team-mates had last been seen and found almost a full cadre of their fellows in various degrees of lounging and chatting.

The only absent members of either team were Polaris and Psylocke.

Sam, seeing that politeness would get them nowhere with so many conversations going on at once, cupped his hands around his mouth and announced loudly.

“BEER!!”

“Where?” Rachel asked, looking up from playing cards with Kitty.

“At the pub. We're going to get a couple. Who's in?” Bobby answered.

“Moi!” Jubilee stood up happily and when several disapproving faces turned in her direction the vampire looked mildly offended. “What? You'll need a DD, won't you?”

Those interested quickly separated themselves from those who did not, making the choice of transportation easier to decide upon and it was quickly agreed that Jubilee would drive one of the school Jeeps. 

“Did someone invite Polaris?” Nightcrawler asked, glancing around and seeing the familiar green tresses were absent from the room as the others located jackets, shoes and gloves to head out into the cool Fall evening.

“Did she need one?” Iceman snorted. Of all of them he was the only one not pleased to have his ex-girlfriend, who was often known to be censorious of him, on the team. 

“You've known her how long, and know her so little?” Kurt scolded, teleporting quickly in a puff of smoke. 

Kurt would have considered it rude to leave anyone out of a social gathering but it seemed particularly egregious when the person being left out was known to have bouts of anxiety and insecurity. Nightcrawler could not imagine that Polaris' sometimes unstable emotional health would be benefited by such an obvious slight.

A quick knock on the door yielded Kurt a less than even toned;

“What!”

Leaving Kurt to appreciate Sam's momentary wisdom.

“Beer!” the blue, furred mutant replied and was rewarded when the sound of hurried footsteps sounded behind the door which was rapidly thrown open.

“Where?”

“At the pub. A bunch of us are going, would you care to join us?”

“Uh... who is us?” Polaris asked skeptically.

When Nightcrawler named almost the entirety of the Gold team, minus Storm who simply did not enjoy crowded, smoky, loud environments, Lorna thought it would be rather poor form of her to beg off.

Although she counted all of the members on the team as friends, if Lorna was honest, she was closer to friendly acquaintances with them. Most of whom, she had never been on a team with for any length of time. Perhaps a mission here, or there, when it was a world ending kind of emergency.

“Why not?” Polaris gave a falsely confident smile, grabbing for the hoodie on the back of her computer chair clumsily.


	2. Hammered with a Capital H

“Far be it from me to judge, or throw stones but Lorna is hammered, with a capital H. And I really don't think she'd be all up on Bobby's shit like that if she wasn't.” Jubilee spoke plainly, hitching a thumb at where the ex's were making fools of themselves by the jukebox.

“Agreed.” Nightcrawler nodded, looking over the rim of his tankard at the scene. Polaris, who had been distant but polite for the beginning of the evening, had turned distinctly flirtatious 3 beers in. 6 beers later and she was borderline predatory.

Were she, or Bobby, even close to sober no one would really have thought twice on the matter. It was a poorly guarded secret that Iceman still held a flame for her and they all doubted either Lorna or Bobby was sober enough to realize that taking advantage of the other was a poor idea.

“Any thoughts on what we should do?” Jubilee asked. She did not want to see anyone get themselves into an ugly situation over cheap beer.

“Distract Bobby, I'll get her back to the Mansion and into bed.” Kurt closed one eye, considering his own words for a moment before adding. “I'm pretty sure I'm sober enough to teleport safely.” 

“You better be, bub.” Jubilee warned and Kurt shot her a rakish grin. 

“Would I disappoint a Lady?” He rose to weave unsteadily through the tables towards the bathrooms.

Jubilee was honestly flattered that Nightcrawler considered her responsible enough to wrangle the others once this minor emergency was taken care of. She was too used to being spoken down to, and treated like a child.

A quick splash of cold water shook off the alcohol cobwebs as much as anything could for Nightcrawler and when he exited he found that Jubilee was performing her task admirably. Bobby was at the bar ordering more drinks and she was “helpfully” getting in his way to delay his return to Lorna's side.

Polaris, vulnerable and alone at the jukebox, had already attracted the less than savory attention of a couple of the bar regulars when Nightcrawler approached.

Blue, furred and fanged with demonic glowing eyes his very appearance quickly gave the regulars room to pause and they decided against the easy mark of the swaying Lorna. No matter how drunk she was. Nightcrawler, along with all the X-men had been long frequenting that particularly dive bar and their abilities were well known enough that he didn't even bother with an image inducer there anymore.

If anyone noticed the sudden implosion of air, or the scent of sulfur over the odor of cheap liquor, no one commented on the sudden disappearance of Nightcrawler and Polaris from the bar.

Teleporting could be rough on a sober stomach and Nightcrawler had babysat a drunk Iceman and Gambit enough times to be well acquainted with what it did on a belly full of cheap beer.

His first destination after landing in the lobby foyer was to take Polaris directly to the bathroom, his own being the quickest and easiest to aim for with a teleport. 

Lorna, who had been drunkenly contemplating if she could throw up behind the jukebox without anyone noticing because she couldn't remember where the bathroom was, was very relieved by the “magical” appearance of a conveniently empty bathroom to vomit into. 

Kurt rolled his saffron coloured eyes heavenward as Polaris promptly lurched over to throw up in the bathtub instead of the toilet.

“Well, there goes my buzz.” He muttered, leaning down to collect the length of her emerald green hair in 1 three-fingered hand to hold it up out of the way for her.

“I'm sorry.” Lorna apologized in a small, delicate voice between bouts of expelling her mostly liquid stomach contents.

Kurt didn't bother to reply, figuring that she wouldn't remember what he said in the morning anyway. A few dry heaves later and Kurt figured that Lorna had probably cleared whatever was left of the alcohol in her stomach. He stepped away momentarily to get her a glass of water only to find her passed out on the bathmat when he returned.

“At least you're lighter than Wolverine.” Kurt muttered with a sigh, leaning down and planning to haul the unconscious magnetist off the floor. A hiccup on her part stopped him forcibly with the reminder of the time he had picked up a drunk Rachel and gotten vomited on for his trouble. Instead Kurt gripped the edge of the bathmat and simply dragged Lorna out of the bathroom and onto the carpet of his room.

He didn't like the chances of dragging her all the way to her room nor did he think Bobby wasn't likely to show up there in his own stupid-drunk state. So, Kurt tossed a spare blanket over Polaris and left her there to go and clean up his bathtub. 

After too many years with the X-Men he knew well now which bodily fluids would and wouldn't stain the porcelain.

 

The sound of running water roused Lorna and alerted her to the fact that the floor was both uncomfortable and spinning. With a groan she sat up and knocked over the glass of water someone had helpfully set beside her.

“Ugh, I'm such a sloppy drunk bitch.” she complained to the dark room, crawling on her hands and knees towards the closed bathroom door. There was a sliver of light beneath it and, had Lorna been even close to sober, it would have occurred to her that her bathroom was on the left hand side of bed, not the right.

Polaris scratched at the door pathetically.

“I need to peeeeeee.” She whined and was rewarded with coming face to foot with a pair of distinctive, blue feet and spade tipped tail when the door was pulled open. “Thank you.”

“Why do I feel like I'm going to regret this?” Kurt muttered, stepping more or less over Lorna so that she could have some privacy. He'd spent an hour sobering up and scrubbing the bathtub before bleaching it. Deciding he was too wired to sleep Kurt was just filling it to take a hot, relaxing bath when Polaris had interrupted. Once outside the room he noticed instantly that Lorna had spilled her water and cursed softly in German.

A dirty towel and a bit of stomping mostly took care of that as it occurred to him that Lorna had been in the bathroom a rather long time. His bath was calling his name. Ever a gentleman Kurt knocked and called her name several times before deciding she must have passed out on the floor again and turned the knob to let himself in.

Polaris grinned at him maniacally from the bathtub, naked and happily ensconced in HIS bath, leaning against the cool white sides, her head resting on her forearms.

“If you think, for one minute, your stealing my bath is going to prevent me from taking one, you have another thing coming.” Kurt warned her sternly, shaking a finger at her.

“Watcha gonna do, 'port me out? I'll throw up on your floor if you do.” Lorna threatened with a smirk.

“ _Nein_.” Kurt laughed and removed his shirt.

“What are you doing?” Lorna asked, taken aback as Kurt reached for the fly of his pants.

“ _Fraulein_ , you are in MY bath. If you don't want to cop an eyeful you can get OUT of my bath. Either way makes very little difference to me.” Kurt informed her. She was clearly not cognizant of that fact that he was going to take a bath now. Whether she was in the tub or not.

Lorna, still drunk, fully believed she still had the upper hand and called Kurt's “bluff” by affixing him with an unimpressed stare. Her experiences with white-bread American boys had not prepared her in the least to deal with 1 uninhibited German circus performer.

Kurt's pants went the way of his shirt and Lorna squeaked in embarrassment but didn't look away as Kurt simply undressed and climbed into the bathtub, settling himself in the steamy hot water with a satisfied sigh.

Lorna stayed, clinging to the side of the bathtub with embarrassment. She was no where near as comfortable with her own body as Kurt apparently was with his. The teleporter produced an ipad, helpfully waterproof by having been placed in zip-lock bag and waved it at her slightly.

“Want to watch Celebrities Read Mean Tweets?” he offered.

“How are you so comfortable?” Lorna marveled, then gestured roughly at his torso area without actually looking lower than that. “Not that you have anything to be uncomfortable about.”

“Lorna, I grew up in a travelling circus. Private showers and baths were a luxury that was few and far between. Most of the time we simply hosed ourselves or each other off with a garden hose.” Kurt laughed. “There's nothing inherently bad, or taboo, or sexual about nudity. Now, do you want to watch Mean Tweets or not?”

Lorna hesitated, then slowly uncurled herself from the wall of the bathtub so that she could comfortably sit next to Kurt. She was still uncomfortable. No one but her lovers had ever seen her naked before and even then it was strictly with the lights out. Still, Kurt was too busy pulling up youtube on his tablet to pay any attention to Lorna.

 _This is completely normal. Just two drunk mutants watching youtube in a bathtub. Very European._ \- Polaris told herself and by the time she'd relaxed enough to start laughing alongside Kurt she had actually started to believe it.


	3. Friends will. Anyone else is just background noise.

“Doctor Samson here?”

The only reply he received as he somewhat groggily pressed the phone against his ear was a hiccup and a small sob which instantly put the psychiatrist on high alert. The clock on his bedside table read 4am but almost all of his patients, both former and current, knew he could be reached at any time if they needed him.

“Lorna?” Dr Samson guessed. He had not heard from her since her catastrophic break-down after being left at the altar by Alex Summers. Charles Xavier had taken over her therapy and, from what Leonard knew, Polaris had been doing well.

“...yes...” the sniffling reply was barely audible.

“Are you somewhere safe?” He was awake and ready to deploy in an instant if necessary.

“...yes...”

“Where are you?”

“In my closet.”

“Okay. That is a good place.” 

Lorna had always had a tendency to either burrow and hide or become loud and prone to violence when in mental distress. If she had holed herself up in her closet and had the acuity to call for help then it showed she was dealing with crises better than previously. 

“I was so stupid.” Lorna sobbed, feeling like a pathetic fool. “I got so dru...u....uh...unk and now they're all going to lau-au gh at me.”

“It will reflect much, much more poorly on them than on you if they do.” Doctor Samson assured her. “Do you feel comfortable telling me what happened?”

“No.”

“That's alright. Is it okay if I ask you some questions?”

“...okay...”

“Did you go to far with one of your ex's?”

This prompted a fresh bout of tears and Doctor Samson bit the inside of his check to check his natural reaction to sigh in frustration. Lorna, for all her progress and steps towards a mentally healthy future, never could seem to stop valuing herself by how men valued her. Or specifically didn't value her. Considering she was often attracted to men with their own deep seated insecurities that tended to manifested in neglectful behavior to themselves and those around them.

“I didn't sleep with anyone.” Lorna bargained.

“Well thats...”

“But I would have... if Kurt hadn't.... stepped in.” Lorna managed between breaths and tears.

“Kurt?”

“Night...” she paused to sniff. ”...crawler.” 

“I can't say as I am familiar with him but I imagine he must be one of your team-mates.”

“Yes. And now he's going to laugh at meeeeeee.” 

“He may.” Doctor Samson conceded. People were unpredictable and what 1 person saw as a harmless joke could by taken as a cutting insult by another. “What happened after Nightcrawler stepped in?”

Lorna explained as best she could remember. Large parts of her memory were completely absent thanks to alcohol induced amnesia. She honestly didn't remember getting from the pub to the Mansion. She vaguely remembered throwing up but then everything was a blank until she needed to use the bathroom and stole Kurt's bath.  
After that, it was a blur until she woke up in her own bed at 4am wearing Kurt's dressing gown.

Logic said she must have fallen asleep in the bath tub and Nightcrawler had teleported her to her own room to sleep off the booze but she honestly didn't know.

“... and I just feel like.... God, such a fool! Stupid Lorna, can't even get drunk right.”

“Lorna, Lorna, breath deeply. You are beating yourself up and, to be honest, I think it is likely that it is very unnecessary. What you have described sounds like a perfectly normal evening with friends.”

Lorna sniffed loudly.

“How do you mean?”

“You went out with people who are you friends. If you can't trust your friends to indulge you an evenings' poor decisions, who can you? And, those friends proved well that you can trust them. When you displayed behavior that it seemed dangerous a friend removed you from the situation.”

“I.... I guess.” Lorna sounded far from convinced.

“They may well playfully poke fun at you for your behavior while drunk but, if you firmly tell them that it makes you uncomfortable I am sure the subject will be changed very quickly. You are allowed to be embarrassed and express that emotion. Bottling it up will not be helpful.”

“No. I know that.” Lorna confirmed. Repressing herself and her emotions had always gotten her into trouble as the feelings never truly went away, not matter how much she tried to stomp them down. Instead they would fester, and turn into resentment to come clawing out later when she lost control of herself.

“I'm glad. I believe this will be okay, Lorna. Just take the time you need to express to the X-Men what you want from them and, if they are truly your friends, they will listen.”

“And if they don't?” her voice was mostly stable now with only the slightest wobble. 

“Friends will. Anyone else is just background noise. Do you feel better or do want me to stay on the line?”

“I'm okay. Its super late. I should probably try and actually sleep now that I'm sober.”

“Drink some water. Take a couple aspirin. I believe it will be okay.”

“I will. I believe it will be okay.” Lorna agreed and ended the call. It was easy to say the words but hard to make herself actually feel as though it would be okay, however and it took her several long minutes to work up the courage to crawl out from underneath her winter coats and go back to bed.

 

 

This situation looked less like an emergency once daylight arrived, although it took Lorna over an hour as she brushed her hair and teeth and put on her make-up to steel herself to leave her room and face the inevitable jeering.

The entirety of the Gold team was sourcing breakfast in the large kitchen when Lorna walked in.

Bobby, looking entirely worse for wear, was sitting hunched over an untouched bowl of cereal and holding an ice-pack to his head ineffectively. Sam and Ororo, sat on either side of him, were surreptitiously inching away from him in case sudden vomiting.

Kurt, perched on a counter top, sipped a coffee that was being held by his prehensile tail and browsed a magazine that Lorna thought must have been written in German. She didn't think she was quite tired enough for English to look like nonsense. Kitty, sitting with the only 2 non-Gold Team members Rachel and Jubilee, were fussing over the vampire's toddler son, who has having a great time making a mess of his oatmeal whilst Colossus watched on indulgently, nursing a cup of very strong coffee.

“Good morning!” She said cheerfully, affixing a smile that she did not feel on her mouth and managing to look slightly insane rather than “carefree and cheerful”.

A variety of greetings were given back to her, the most notable from Rachel, who shot her a mischievous grin. 

“I hear you got yourself inducted into the “Kurt had to babysit my drunk ass” club last night.” Rachel teased gently.

“I …!” Lorna had been all prepared to react with indignation but Rachel's words implied that this was something that had happened both frequently and to all of them. “Uhm... yes? I didn't realize that that was a thing.”

“Oh yes.” Jubilee laughed and almost everyone else at the table smiled and Kurt sighed and rolled his saffron coloured eyes, playfully exasperated. “Has anyone here not actually had to be carried home and put to bed by 'Crawler at some point?”

To Polaris' surprise the only hand that went up was that of Colossus, who cheerfully explained;

“Only because he could not lift me.”

“Wha-ha-hat?” Polaris broke into giggles, unable to help herself feeling a palpable mixture of relief and amusement. “Even Storm, the Goddess herself?!”

“We do not speak of the _Incident_ and I was not drunk. I had a bad reaction to allergy medicine.” Storm pressed two finger-tips to the bridge of her nose. 

“Sneezes make lightning bolts.” Jubilee supplied helpfully and earned herself a dire glare from Storm.

“I do not recall ever actually putting you to bed, Jubilee.” Nightcrawler frowned, looking over the top of the magazine.

“You didn't. You put me in the Hallway closet on Wolverine's leather coat so Frosty couldn't find me and wouldn't ground my ass 7 ways to Sunday.” 

“Ah, _ja_. Now I recall.” Nightcrawler's reply was so simple one might have thought he was merely discussing the weather.

“Well... I feel better about behaving like such a fool.” Polaris gave a nervous chuckle, running a hand through her hair and realizing she was still wearing the bracelet she had put on last night. It was silver and one of her most prized possessions, despite its simplicity, as she had purchased it herself in Cairo rather than it being a gift from Alex, whose opinions on what she should wear often differed from her own. 

She took it off and set it near the fruit basket and set about finding herself some of the coffee that Nightcrawler was drinking, intensely relieved that her antics were little more than a footnote in a long list of poor decisions made by the intoxicated X-Men.


	4. The Mannite Mission (Part 1)

It was always remarkable to Polaris, no matter how much time she spent as an X-Man, how the Teams managed to rapidly deploy with an efficiency that could put most military units to shame. Even though there were many whom would draw the comparison between Soldiers and X-men, many of them pulled double duty as Teachers and even triple duty as Teachers, Headmistresses and Team-Leaders.

One moment they had all been laughing and swapping stories of their favorite cocktails, the next they were clipped into the Blackbird jetting across the country at sub-sonic speeds.

 _I didn't miss this_ – Polaris thought, casting a sidelong glance at Colossus rigid, clenched jaw profile. She had never been one for Heroics, or Teams or this Lifestyle, as evidenced by how often she had attempted to permanently leave it, only to be forced back for her own safety. When she first joined the X-men it had been a survival tactic and nothing more. Although she had grown to love them and value them at the end of the day had Iceman not decided to take her to Charles Xavier while she was too weak to protest her history could have been very different indeed.

Her train of thought, which very easily could have grown morbid, was interrupted by Storm rising from her place at the front of the Blackbird to giving the Mission Briefing while Shadowcat piloted the Blackbird.

“Several years ago the X-men crossed paths with a group of entities known at the Mannites. 1, a child named Nina, came to the X-men for help after learning that the Horseman Death was tracking them.  
We presume, although we cannot be certain, that Apocalypse wished to harness to massive energies unleashed when the Mannites evolved to their higher powered pure-energy forms.  
Although the Team was unsuccessful in stopping Death Nina managed to teleport the Mannites to an unknown location.  
From there, we heard nothing more and, given questions still remained regarding how Apocalypse had known of the Mannites existence when none else did it was viewed as wiser to leave them to what refuge they could find.  
Nina had no trouble contacting the team once and given the X-men's lack of ability to track the Mannites, we could do little more than trust that they would reach out to us again, should they need us.  
It would appear that the Mannites, or someone acting in their stead, have finally attempted to make contact.  
We rendezvous at the co-ordinates in 15 minutes. I am certain I do not have to warn any of you to prepare yourselves to be walking into a trap.”

“Given the X-Men's history, it is simply safer to assume we are than otherwise.” Sam quipped.

“Correct.” Storm affirmed, then gestured to the monitors behind her. “These are the last known images of the Mannites. Familiarize yourselves with them.”

“The beacon is still active.” Shadowcat reported.

_I really don't miss this_ – Polaris thought, giving the monitors a cursory glance before turning to look out the window. - _We're idiots for rushing off to risk life and limb for some cybernetic brats who hadn't bothered to say “boo” to the X-Men in God only knows how long. Course, if I say that I'm an “unfeeling asshole” who “worries people”._

Logically, Polaris knew very well indeed that the reason the X-Men rushed off to risk life and limb was, more often that not, if they didn't no one else would. Lorna had been there on Genosha, the day the Giant Sentinels came to visit.  
She had seen so much death. So much carnage and blood-shed that it still haunted her dreams and probably always would. 

What she didn't see that day was anyone rushing to risk life and limb for her or her people. 

Emma Frost had said something once that Polaris couldn't help but think back to in situations like this;  
_“Where were the Avengers when our babies were burning?”_

Polaris was not fond of telepaths in general and considered that one in particular to be a sanctimonious bitch but Emma had been right that day all the same. 

If not the X-Men, who else would bother? Who else would care? The sad truth of it was that no one would, as Polaris had witnessed all too readily at Genosha. 

“I'm going to take a wild guess that that is what we're looking for.” Shadowcat observed, dropping the Blackbird out of sub-orbital altitudes and into stealth mode. As she did the hulking, broken shell of a Helicarrier became visible in the Nevada desert below them. 

Barren sand stretched for miles around, making the empty Helicarrier hull look like a transplant from an alien world. 

“I had heard a rumor Osborn had been constructing a second H.A.M.M.E.R Helicarrier in the desert prior to the Siege of Asgard but, as none could locate it, it was dismissed as simple conjecture.” Storm observed as the Blackbird began is slow vertical descent. 

“They didn't have the Mannites beacon. I'll put in a call the SHIELD about its location.” Shadowcat commented. 

“Pssh, at least let us loot it first.” Polaris muttered, not quite realizing she had spoken out loud until 6 faces swung in her direction. She took their expressions for disapproval and twisted her lips wryly. “What? Its not like we owe SHIELD a damn thing. They've been taking from the X-Men and giving nothing back for far too long.” 

“Polaris' suggestion is not without merit. I do not like the term “loot” but I fail to see the harm in at least making certain what has become of the Mannites before placing the call. Should we happen to pick up some interesting looking souvenirs along the way, well, we are only human, are we not?” Nightcrawler observed, the first to look away from Polaris. 

“When you put it like that, you silver-tongued Devil.” Storm teased and nodded to Shadowcat to hold off on contacting the relevant authorities. Her blue eyes slid back to to her furred and fanged team-mate however. 

Just as when she had introduced Polaris as a member of the team something about the way Kurt had responded was sticking in Storm's mind. The words were so very Kurt. A little cheeky and a little libertine but there was a cold edge to the them now. A calculating logic that Storm had never known from the once passionate and fun-loving Nightcrawler. 

A small jolt, and shift marked the landing of the Blackbird and its settling into place on the fickle desert sand. The Helicarrier, which had seemed massive from above was now a towering, black monstrosity that blocked out the sun above them. Shadowcat lifted a tracker from the dash as Storm assessed her team. 

“Shadowcat, Nightcrawler and Iceman, you're with me. We will go in and attempt to locate the Mannites. Polaris, Colossus and Sam, you will remain on guard here. If you see a signal we require backup or extraction with all possible haste.” 

_Never let it be said that the X-Men aren't a well oiled machine_ – Polaris observed, stepping from the Blackbird's ramp and feeling the sand beneath her boots as her team-mates disappeared into the metallic behemoth before them. 


	5. The Mannite Mission (Part 2)

“If'n I was a bettin' man, I'd wager that was a signal.” Sam commented as a bolt of blue-white lightning struck the Helicarrier directly in the middle of its decaying flight deck.

“Da.” Colossus agreed, in an instant becoming a being of metal and not flesh. “Polaris, would you be so kind as to...”

He never got to finish his sentence before the bored magnetist made a fluid gesture up with her hand before throwing it towards the Helicarrier. Colossus could not help but follow the gesture, his metal body sent hurtling towards the structure with precious more than a thought by Polaris.

Her aim, despite her apparent nonchalance, was perfect and his metal body made impact at the exact point that Storm's thunderbolt had. Colossus, having tucked himself into roughly a ball shape, cleaved the gigantic flight deck straight down the middle with a grotesque roar of twisting metal.

“You want a turn?” Polaris snapped, seeing Cannonball was looking at her, eyebrows raised. She couldn't figure out if it was fear, or admiration on his face, which annoyed her.

“No thanks.” Sam grinned, pulling down his goggles. “I can _come in like a wrecking ball_ all on my ownsome.”

And he did just that, powering up with a blast and careening towards the Helicarrier with Polaris following in his wake.

He made a gesture to the right before barreling down the hole that Colossus had made, the glow of his powers illuminating the twisted, broken insides of the craft as he went.

Lorna saw in an instant what Sam had seen. Nightcrawler was on the now broken flight deck, doing battle with an unknown assailant.

It had the generic look of cyborg. A turret like head, red LED "eyes" and shoulders as wide as it was tall with long, ill-shaped arms that were clumsy and over-long. What was odd, Polaris noticed, as she swooped in the give aid if necessary, was the fact that it appeared to be made out of pieces of the Helicarrier itself. On its back she could clearly see a panel that was made from a door and bore numbers that would correspond to an apartment number.

Nightcrawler had successfully caused the metallic beast harm by leaping onto its head and teleporting away when it attempted to dislodge him, provoking it to punch itself in its turret-like head.

The thing staggered backwards, genuinely shaken by its own “friendly fire” as two more of the lumbering things climbed over the edge of the flight deck.

“Yeah, nah.” Polaris snorted, giving a gesture and reversing the polarity of creatures' magnetic fields causing them to be repelled away from the ship at great speed, rather than being pulled towards it by gravity.

“There's more coming, I suspect. I tried to draw a small cadre of them away from the others.” Nightcrawler warned, then suddenly his entire body stiffened, his hands flying to his head as the glow of his eyes seemed to intensify 100 fold. “Polaris... be care...” was all he managed to get out before dropping to his knees in obvious agony.

Polaris whirled, looking for the source of his affliction but saw only the shambling cyborg who had punched itself.

Its turret swiveled towards her and she reacted with the only weapon she had on hand, summoning one of the other cyborgs that she had expelled back to earth at a speed fighter-jets could only dream of achieving. The two cyborgs smashed into each other with the force of a small bomb explosion and drove both of them through the metal of the flight deck to become stuck in the twisted metal.

“SSSSSSHHHRRRRKKK. CONTAINMENT FIELD. BREACHED. DETONATE. ENGAGED.”

“Meggan, get down!” 

She heard Kurt's voice behind her but didn't realize he was talking to her until she felt him grip her by the waist and teleport them both to the far side of the deck behind the defunct body of an unfinished Apache helicopter

Even with his distraction Polaris managed to pull up a magnetic shield to hold the helicopter in place and protect them both as a massive blast turned the world red and hot momentarily. 

“Are you alright?” Nightcrawler asked, relaxing from where he had instinctively curled himself around Polaris to shield her with his own body.

“You should have gotten behind me! I might be female but I'm still the one with magnetic powers, dummy.” Polaris scolded, brushing herself off as she stood, ignoring the hand Nightcrawler offered her.

“I trusted your shield to keep us both alive. Of course I would shield the person that generates it.” Nightcrawler corrected. 

“Oh. Sorry. No offense.”

“None taken.” 

She believed him. 

Not because he had shot her a reassuring smile, or kissed the back of her hand gallantly, the way he once would have. But because of the flat quality of his voice.

Polaris got the distinct impressed that Kurt simply didn't care. An impression that was reinforced when he turned his back to her, teleporting to the epicenter of the blast and leaving her to follow as she pleased.

He perched on a contorted piece of metal that jutted out from the deck as Polaris took to the skies once more, not bothering to try and walk over the fractured and now warped flight deck. The Helicarrier gave a series of drawn out creaks and groans from below that did not forebode well for the team-mates still below.

“The structural integrity is compromised. Can you hold it?”

“I think so but that ...thing... is going to come down to earth at a rapid rate if I do. I can't hold both.”

“I will cover you. I don't trust the sound our footing is currently making.” Nightcrawler promised as she landed near him. 

The air surrounding her glowed green and, despite knowing it was dangerous to do so, Polaris found her eyes closing of their own accord as she reached out with other senses. She had a way of viewing the world that none save her Father could claim to understand. The magnetosphere of earth itself unfolding before her minds eye like a glowing, viridian lattice work of power that she could manipulate at will. 

Kurt had been right, the blast had damaged the internal framework of the Hellicarrier and it took every ounce of her concentration to reach out to each flawed component and reinforce them with her powers.

It was the whistling that gave Nightcrawler his first indication that the cyborg thing that Lorna had sent skyward was returning to earth. He located a handy length of mostly straight metal and gave it a few experimental flicks, twirling it and tossing it back and forth between his hands to test its balance.

It was hardly a fencing foil but, for the moment, it would have to do. He could not risk Lorna's concentration being broken or the possibility of the others being buried when the Helicarrier inevitably collapsed under its own gargantuan weight.

Fortunately his team-mates had well recognized the danger they were in in the bowels of the beast and, by the time the cyborg had made a crash landing into the desert sand Cannonball and Iceman were already flying and sliding after it in hot pursuit in case it developed designs on the Blackbird.

“Don't hurt him! He doesn't know!” A plaintive voice called and as Nightcrawler watched Shadowcat and a slim, 4 fingered child of 13 or 14 air-walked from out of the wreckage of the impact zone. “They're just children playing a game. They don't mean to.”

The Mannite known as Nina turned her huge, black, bug like eyes towards Nightcrawler imploringly and he instantly cast aside the make-shift weapon to appease her.

Storm, carrying Colossus with no small amount of effort, rose from within the Helicarrier.

“We should evacuate this monstrosity with all haste.” She directed before gliding beautifully on her winds towards the Blackbird. The team all followed with Polaris moving to obey last and only retracting her magnetic support when she was certain all of her team-mates were safe on the moderately more stable sand.

Iceman had contained the cyborg in an icicle prison, although it seemed to have calmed down considerably for seeing Nina. Its turret head, still free, kept swiveling so that it kept its red LED “eyes” on her at all times.

The Helicarrier creaked ominously but remained standing.

“You're safe now, Nina. Tell us, why did you summon the X-Men?” Storm asked the teenager.

“We couldn't figure out how to get it working.” Nina explained, looking towards the Helicarrier. “The nasty Patriot man wanted to use the Mannites to power it but he went gone before we figured out how.”

“Osborn.” Shadowcat commented knowingly, correctly diagnosing whom the “nasty Patriot man” was.

“Why do you want to get the Helicarrier operational, Nina? Surely you must realize how much attention that will garner. The Mannites have been hidden for so long.”

Storm frowned. It seemed so very out of character for your subversive group.

“So we could go to space. The true Mannite form is a pure energy form. I'm the only one left who hasn't evolved yet. If we could get outside of the Earth's atmosphere before breaching our containment suits we could go and be with the stars themselves.” Nina explained, then looked crest fallen. “But we couldn't figure out how. I didn't tell the other Mannites I'd called for help, that's why they attacked you when you showed up. I'm so sorry.”

“We are sorry too, Nina.” Storm replied. “But I don't think the X-Men can help you. We simply don't have that kind of technology right now.”

“Not easily accessible anyway. Hank could probably build something but, it'd take years.” Shadowcat added, considering the possibilities of retro-fitting a rocket from what remained of the Sh'Iar technology at Xavier's after so many years of attacks and catastrophes. The entire structure had been razed more times than they cared to count. 

The cyborg's turret swiveled and Nina looked towards it, then tipped her head lightly to one side as if considering something and looking for all the world as if she were communicating with the other Mannite telepathically.

“He says that she could.” Nina pointed at Polaris. “He said she did something and he went up – up- up.”

“I simply reversed his polarity.” Lorna shrugged dismissively “You'd all be fried to death before you got anywhere near escaping the atmosphere, though.”

“Not so. Our bodies are nothing like yours. We have survived worse.” Nina explained. “Will you? Please?”

Polaris looked to Storm for guidance and feeling lost by this request. She'd met people who wanted to destroy the planet. She'd met people who wanted to enslave the planet. She had certainly met a whole bunch of people who wanted to save the planet. This was her first meeting with creatures who wanted to exit the planet.

“I... think I could. I mean, I've never changed someone's polarity permanently. Its more of a _get them the fuck away_....”

“Lorna! There's a child here!” 

“... _until I know what to do with_ them type of a deal.” 

Polaris didn't bother even giving Shadowcat's censure a lick of attention. 

“The days of the X-Men insisting everyone return to the Mansion with them are long gone.” Storm observed pragmatically. “I believe, if the Mannites wish to leave this planet, who are we to impose our will upon them? The decision rests with you, Polaris. Just as the Mannites will not be forced to do anything against their wishes, nor will you be tasked with anything beyond your comfort.”

“If you're absolutely sure you can survive it?” Polaris questioned skeptically.

“Without question. Look, the two Mannites you defeated earlier have already formed new containment suits and are unharmed.” Nina indicated behind her to the Helicarrier where a group of 7 Mannites, all in similar looking, patched together containment suits composed of pieces of the Helicarrier, were climbing down the sides of the carrier to join them in the sand.

Polaris felt the weight of their gaze on her, if she could call it that. They didn't truly have eyes anymore but she still sensed their scrutinization, and their desperation. They perceived her as their only hope. 

“I've been to the stars.” Lorna commented softly, thinking of her time with the Starjammers and the Inhumans. Who was she to deny them to another? “Besides, it seems like this planet really hasn't done the Mannites any favors.” 

“I'm so glad you understand.” Nina broke down, her voice catching in her throat although no tears came to her eyes. Lorna thought perhaps the Mannites had not been designed with the ability to cry.

Slowly, lumbering and cumbersome, the Mannites in their containment suits walked through the sand and began to form themselves into a sphere around Nina until only one hand and part of her face was visible in a gap between all of their bodies.

“I hope the stars are kinder to you than Earth was.” Polaris said, taking Nina's hand briefly as the other X-men fell back to give her room to work.

“We will remember you forever.” Nina promised, releasing Lorna's hand and disappearing fully into the confines of her fellow Mannites' bodies.

Despite her words Lorna still hesitated, glancing toward the Blackbird where the others waited for her to finish her task in silence. It was Nightcrawler who drew her eye. He was crouched on the Blackbird's landing gear, his hands and tail draped casually over his legs.

 _He looks like he really couldn't care less, about anything._ \- Lorna noted, distractedly turning back to the Mannites. She no longer cared about the moral implications of expelling the cyborg children from the Earth. They were no longer her priority. They were merely something that was in the way of her curiosity as to what was wrong with Kurt.

_And who the fuck is Meggan?_


	6. So, who the fuck IS Meggan?

“Who is Meggan?” Proved to be a very fun question when asked to the right person.

Lorna asked Bobby and Sam first, simply because they were the 1st of her team-mates that she came across after mission debriefing.

They were lounging in one of the front sitting rooms and watching something scandalous if the way they jumped and scrambled for the remote to change the channel when Lorna entered the room was any indication.

She tactfully pretended she hadn't just seen a pair of naked breasts on the television screen before posing her question.

“Who?” Bobby replied, looking unimpressed.

“She's married to Captain Britain, right?” Sam questioned, at least slightly more helpful than Bobby had been.

“Fucked if I know. Ask Storm. She knows everyone.” Bobby shrugged. Lorna considered this unusually wise advice from Bobby and went in search of the dark skinned beauty.

Somewhat predictably the Headmistress of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters was found in the control room of the Danger Room, programming a simulation for one of her classes. 

“Who is Meggan?” Polaris asked, interrupting Storm's work. 

“Meggan Braddock is an Empathic mutant from Scotland. She is married to Captain Britain and is Psylocke's sister in law. She was part of the original Excalibur and was particularly close to Shadowcat and Rachel Grey. I would speak to either of those ladies if you wished to know more.” Storm rattled off, seemingly intensely distracted.

“Got it. Thanks.” Lorna nodded, turning away and wondering if Storm realized she had betrayed more than she had obviously meant to. The fact that Storm had deliberately excluded Nightcrawler's name when speaking of Excalibur was telling simply by its absence.

Excalibur was the only team Kurt had ever served on other than the X-Men, even leading it for a long period of his life. Even Polaris, who had been absent or otherwise occupied most of Nightcrawler's career with the X-Men, knew that. So why had Ororo purposefully not directed Polaris to speak to him?

“Curiouser and curiouser.” Polaris muttered to herself, tracking down Shadowcat in the kitchen where the brunette mutant was absentmindedly munching on an apple and reading a text book on Quantum Physics.

“Who is Meggan?” Had an extremely interesting affect on Shadowcat. She promptly dropped her apple in surprise, hastily trying to cover her reaction by snatching for it and accidentally phasing her hand through the table instead.

“Meggan was a team-mate of mine. Where did you hear that name?” Kitty's reply was just a whisker too fast to sound truly casual.

Lorna saw no reason to be honest with someone who wasn't being honest with her.

“Oh, it came up when I was chatting to Rachel.” 

Kitty's shoulders relaxed noticeably. A fact not lost on Lorna, who continued; “Say, have you seen a silver bracelet around here anywhere? I could have sworn I left it by the fruit basket.”

“Can't say I have.”

Lorna frowned. She was going to be really annoyed if she had lost that and she was certain she had left it there before breakfast. Still, she had a mystery to solve and she was confident that her bracelet would turn up. It wasn't worth enough to attract the attention of their resident Master Thief, Gambit.

Lorna excused herself to track down Rachel, thinking it best to at least chat with the redhead briefly to cover her lie, even if telepaths made her incredibly uncomfortable. Still, she was nothing if not an X-Man and filled her mind with a silly pop song so that her surface thoughts would not betray her.

Rachel, one of the only people in residence who was 100% devoted to teaching at that time, was chatting softly to Jubilee in the common room that connected the School facilities to the Mansion that served as the Team and Teacher Dormitories.

Shogo was napping on a sofa when Lorna entered and both Jubilee and Rachel held their fingers up to their lips to caution her to be quiet as she entered.

“Who is Meggan?” Lorna asked in a whisper.

Kitty had at least attempted to be smooth, Rachel didn't bother, snarking out;

“Why?” and leading Jubilee to hush her.

“She's Captain Britain's wife, right? I'm trying to make sure I have the right face with the right name.” Lorna replied casually as if Rachel hadn't spoken.

“Yeah. That's her.” Rachel smiled, lightly, trying not to betray relief in her expression and failing.

“Cool, thanks for the help.” Lorna waved airily and, seemingly satisfied, excused herself with the excuse of searching for her bracelet. 

Polaris had walked back to her room and paused on her doorstep when it occurred to her she was being followed. The hairs on the back on her neck prickling up until she saw Jubilee, of all people, coming around the corner, a sleepy toddler freshly awoken from his nap on her hip.

“They with-hold information from me all the damn time too.” Jubilee stated, gesturing for Lorna to enter the green hair magnetists room so they could speak in private. “Fortunately for me most of them haven't changed their phone passwords in 6 about years.......Nightcrawler was in love with Meggan. That's why no one wants to speak about her. He dated others but he was still in love with her the day she married someone else. And he was still in love with her the day she died.” Jubilee explained, settling Shogo in a corner with a handful of teddy grahams and producing a sippy cup of juice from a jacket pocket.

“Ouch.” Polaris winced softly.

“The way Wolvie told it, when Meggan revived she found that Brian had fallen off the sobriety wagon BIG time and came running to Kurt. Basically offered to leave Brian for him. Kurt, being the amazing human being that he is, took her back to Brian and talked them through saving their damn marriage. They're still happily married to this day.”

“Fuck me. That'd do anyone's head in.”

“Kurt's never really recovered from the whole Meggan thing and then Logan, the one person that Kurt will actually talk to, went and died on all of us.” 

“You seem to know an awful lot about Kurt's business.” Polaris informed the vampire a tad skeptically. It wasn't that she didn't believe what Jubilee was saying, it would certainly explain a lot, Lorna just wanted to make sure the information she was getting was 100% accurate and not conjecture based on rumor. Jubilee wasn't precisely close to Kurt, unlike Kitty or Storm. 

“Kurt was Wolvie's best friend. He is the strongest link to Logan that my son and I have left. Shogo will know about Logan through the stories people like Kurt will tell him. I make Nightcrawler my business.” Jubilee told Lorna forcefully and flashing her fangs just a little.

“So why the secrecy? Because Kurt hates to talk about it.” Polaris asked, then instantly answered her own question. She may have been on a team with the teleporter only once before and then only briefly but she was still very familiar with how quick Kurt was to help others with their problems in order to ignore his own.

“Bingo.”

“Thank you for being honest with me, Jubilee.”

“You're welcome. I hope you'll do the same for me. I should not have to find out about Skrull invasions because I hacked Shadowcat's fucking voice-mail.” Jubilee hadn't meant to sound so bitter but she honestly resented the way the X-men trickle truthed her, as if she were child who needed be babied and protected. 

“Could be worse. I've got a degree in Archaeology. I have assisted in digs in Egypt and in Africa that added previously unknown history to our knowledge of Planet Earth. I have been cited in published peer reviewed scientific articles. And all the X-Men see when they look at me is Magneto's emotionally compromised daughter.” Polaris snorted.

“What, you mean you're not crazy?” Jubilee teased, grinning at Polaris, who rolled her eyes at her.

“I never said that.” Polaris laughed. “I can't seem to remember where I put my favorite bracelet down less than 4 hours ago after all!”


	7. The Bracelet Incident

"Looking for this?" Bobby asked, a small, impish smile gracing his boyish features. He reclined casually against the counter and dangled from 2 fingers Lorna's silver bracelet.

Sam and Kitty, the only other 2 awake so far, were sleepily munching breakfast at the kitchen table.

"Yes!" The magnetist enthused, her quest for breakfast forgotten at the sight of her beloved bracelet. "Where did you find it?"

"It was on the couch in the sitting room. Sam almost sat on it, so you're welcome." Iceman's smile bordered on flirtatious as he lifted the bracelet so that he could put it on her wrist for her.

The effect was lost on Polaris, however, who scowled deeply;

"How the Hell did it get there? I left it by the fruit basket!" she insisted, voice shrill.

"How should I know. You asked where I found it, I told you!" Bobby snapped defensively as if she were accusing him of taking it. He slapped it on the counter beside her. "You probably dropped it there and didn't realize."

"I know where I put my bracelet, Bobby!" Lorna reiterated forcefully.

"Do you?" Bobby snarked in an ugly tone of voice. Lorna's mental health was known to be sometimes questionable.

Lorna gasped, deeply offended, looking about ready to slap Bobby.

"Maybe someone moved it." Sam suggested, trying to diffuse the situation before violence erupted.

"Why would they move it to a couch? In a room I rarely go in?" Polaris demanded, turning towards Cannonball in time to see Kitty rolling her eyes and twirling her finger at her temple at Sam. "EXCUSE ME! Did you just...?! I am not fucking CRAZY! I know where I left my goddamn bracelet! You were ALL HERE yesterday morning. YOU SAW ME DO IT!"

"I was hung over as all Hell. I didn't see a damn thing." Bobby retorted, smug, sitting himself at the table with a challenging smirk.

A chilly, palpable silence filled the room. Kitty and Sam's failure to speak up was a blatant denial of having seen her take off the bracelet.

Lorna felt herself start shaking in rage, clenching her fists. The bracelet started to levitate along with a several pieces of discarded cutlery in the sink.

"Are. You. Fucking. Kidding. Me." Lorna growled. She hadn't even been on the team a full 48 hours and they all thought she was a nut job already.

"I should certainly hope not. The joke does not appear to be particularly amusing." Storm announced her and Nightcrawler's arrival to the room smoothly, blue eyes sweeping around the room imperiously to land on the furious Polaris. "Pray, what is occurring here, precisely?"

"She's having..."

"Someone stole...!"

Kitty and Polaris started talking at the same time, which Storm quickly shut down by affixing Shadowcat with a stern glare;

"I believe I asked Lorna, Kitty." Ororo turned back to Polaris, who had thankfully started to calm down. Storm had had a feeling that the magnetist would do so upon being allowed to say her piece uninterrupted and was pleased that she knew her individual team members so well. "So...?"

"I put my bracelet next to the fruit basket yesterday morning. It showed up in a completely different room with no explanation and I want to know who touched my things and why." Polaris tried, and failed to keep the snarl from her voice but Storm appreciated the effort. Lorna was not known for her emotional restraint once she was fired up and frankly Ororo considered it a vast improvement that Polaris wasn't flinging butter knives at people.

"No one saw her put it there. She could be mis-remembering." Shadowcat replied simply, completely glossing over her own rudeness and causing Polaris to shoot her an ugly glare.

"You called me crazy."

"I never said that."

"You went like this..." Polaris mimicked the international gesture for "crazy" "...how else was I supposed to interpret that!?"

"Kitty, really." Storm scolded. "You know your manners better than that. I must admit, Lorna, I also do not recall seeing you set down the bracelet."

"I did."

Every head turned towards Nightcrawler. He had been standing slightly removed from Storm and so silently than most had forgotten he was there, or not noticed him arrive with Ororo. Kurt stepped passed the white haired beauty and walked over to the counter he had been sitting up yesterday. He adopted the same position perching on the counter and nonchalantly pouring himself a cup of coffee from the ever present Mr. Coffee. He picked up the same magazine he had been reading, displaying very clearly that he had been facing the fruit basket that morning. "I remember because I happened to be reading an article about a new silver mine in Poland when Polaris happened to take off a silver bracelet." 

He flipped a couple pages in the magazine and held up the aforementioned article. Although it was in German the 2 page splash of an aerial photograph of a mine needed no translation, making it more or less impossible for anyone to challenge him on his memory.

"Sorry Lorna." Kitty apologized, looking at her breakfast ashamedly.

"Sorry Lorna." Sam echoed, also looking contrite.

"You didn't say anything." Lorna commented, puzzled by Sam's apology.

"Yeah, but I thought it." Sam admitted.

Bobby snorted with annoyance, not considering himself to have anything to apologize for and stormed out of the room. He was the one who had found the damn bracelet and he didn't even get any credit for it.

Nightcrawler watched him go with a quirked eyebrow and slightly narrowed saffron eyes but ultimately said nothing.


	8. Marie Antoinette

"Hiyah!" Rogue's upper body, smiling face and laughing green eyes, crowned with that instantly recognizable bi-coloured hair, appeared around the door-jam to Lorna's room.

"Hi, Rogue." Lorna's smile was one of genuine relief. Storm had basically dismissed everyone to their rooms after the bracelet incident. The Team-Leader had obviously not said so in as many words but the suggestion that everyone separate to have a think about their behavior was pregnant with a threat of what would happen if they did not comply.

Lorna was half expected the Goddess herself to show up to "discuss" things and was 100% not in the mood for it.

"That party dress store in the Mall is going out of business. Wanna go try on ugly prom dresses?" Rogue asked with a mischievous grin. 

"God yes. Getting outta this place for a while sounds ah-mazing right now."

"Totally feelin' you there, girl."

Lorna hopped off her bed and debated if she should try covering her hair. Anti-mutant sentiment had never been particularly good and it was at a fair "high" right now thanks to the antics of those idiot Summers brothers.

Lorna eventually settled on being able to explain away her hair as a wig, or the result of a bottle of dye and so grabbed her sweater and headed out with Rogue. The Southern Belle paused to alert both their Team-Leaders that the pair would be out of the building for the foreseeable future via intercom. Hank replied with his well wishes for their outing and asked Rogue to stay on-call as Gambit had taken the day off as well.

"Ah have a confession t'make." Rogue announced as they were strapped into one of the school jeeps and cruising the back-roads to the local mall. "Well, 2 confessions."

"Oh?"

"Kurt texted me what happened at breakfast and asked me t'get y'all out the Mansion for a couple hours."

"Oh." Lorna's reply was slightly confused. On one hand she didn't like being manipulated. On the other she did really, really need to get some distance from her Team-Mates to clear her head and it was kind of Nightcrawler to realize that. She decided to be grateful for the distraction, asking lightly; "Whats the other confession?"

"Well, Ah do wanna try on ugly dresses but Ah also kinda want your help spyin' on mah boyfriend."

"Oooooh ho ho! Well, this just got interesting." Lorna announced, rubbing her hands together gleefully.

She absolutely loved other peoples relationship-drama, especially when she got to covertly participate in it. It was the closest thing one could get to being ring-side at a soap opera.

 

"What even is this? It looks like Barbie threw up?" Polaris giggled, holding up a mini dress that managed to be simultaneously plastic looking and covered in sequins. It was neither hot-pink, nor bubblegum pink but both, at the same time, in a horrific manner.

"Can you imagine wakin' up to that after a night of drinking? Bleerrg!" Rogue laughed, pantomiming throwing up.

"Oh hey, speaking of drinkin', are you a member of the "'Crawler had to babysit my drunk ass" club?" Lorna asked curiously, delicately adding the pink monstrosity to her pile to try on.

"Ha-ha-ha! Yessssss!" Rogue laughed joyfully. "A couple times now, Ah think. Pretty sure Ah managed to vomit and bleed on him at the same time once. But he's my brother, so Ah get t'do that."

Lorna felt confusion colouring her expression that had nothing to do with the Big Bird Yellow velvet flapper dress she had just picked up;

"Brother?"

"Kurt is Mystique's son, remember?"

"Ah, duh Lorna." she rolled her eyes at herself. She really did forget that more often than she should although she suspected that they all did. He never spoke of it so it was easy to assume that he forgot about it himself too.

"Ah'll take that." Rogue took the velvet flapper dress. "Oh Mai Gawd. Its a drag-queen's wet dream."

"There is a limit of 6 items per room, ladies." A helpful sales attendant offered, browsing near the statuesque pair before addressing Lorna. "I love your hair. Is that Manic Panic?"

"Arctic Fox, actually. All the WWE wrestlers use it." Lorna lied glibly.

"We just had a gown returned that would look amazing with your hair." the saleswoman woman gestured to a pile of, unsurprisingly, green fabric on the counter. Lorna did a quick count of her pile, ascertained she only have 5 items so far and wandered over to take a look.

They had come to try on ugly dresses but she saw no harm in trying on something she might actually like to take home.

The saleswoman held up the gown for Polaris' inspection and Rogue and Lorna exchanged amused glances.

"No, Rogue, THAT is a Drag Queen's wet-dream." Lorna corrected, eyeballing the shiny silver and green confection masquerading as a mermaid style gown.

"Ah can't tell whats base fabric and what's applique detail." Rogue marveled, honestly impressed with the sheer amount of bling on the the gown.

"It was a custom order for a girl who does beauty pageants but she bleached her hair and decided to wear teal instead." the saleswoman explained. "Its never even been tried on and its steeply discounted because its final sale."

The saleswoman clearly worked on commission and was determined that Lorna and Rogue weren't leaving without making at least 1 purchase. Fortunately for her the pair were in indulgent moods and having a good time.

"Can't hurt to try it on. Y'all never know when y'might need to look amazing at someone else's wedding." Rogue, a terrible enabler, told Polaris.

"That's the single most cynical thing I've ever heard you say. I love it." Polaris laughed, taking the dress from the woman and heading for the dressing rooms.

"What are you trying on first?" Rogue asked as they separated to different rooms.

"The pink awfulness, of course."

"I need this yellow velvet monstrosity on my body, like now."

"Come out and show me!"

"Of course, shugah!"

Their friendly banter had to pause as they changed into the respective terrible dresses with Rogue exiting first and taking up a position on a small raised platform which was flanked by 3 mirrors.

Lorna instantly burst out laughing catching sight of Rogue who was shimmying her body in a way to make the tassels on the flapper dress sway.

"Look! Ah'm a jazz canary!" Rogue howled with laughter, clutching at her sides as climbing off the platform so Lorna could step up.

"Well.... that's unexpected." Lorna said, wiping the tears from her eyes and assessing herself in the mirror.

"Ah hate t'say it... but that colour on you is ....wow Lorna." Rogue's statement was heavily laced with disbelief. "Ah expected you to look like a game of Candyland threw up on yah. Pink, green and white!"

"You and me both." Lorna confirmed, turning to admire her body profile. Shockingly the lurid pink dress flattered her skin-tone instead of washing her out, making her appear more tanned than she actually was. Although it contrasted with her green hair, it miraculously did not clash with the viridian locks and it hugged every inch of her curves with the hemline ending just far enough below the curve of her ass to be provocative but not scandalous.

"Girl, if you don't buy it, Ah'm doing it for you. Y'all look way to babely t'pass it up!"

 

 

"So, when do we get to go spy on Gambit, or have we actually been doing it this entire time?" Polaris asked, packages slung over one shoulder. Along with 2 gowns, because she hadn't been able to say no to the green and silver one either, they had also stopped for manicures and purchased a new pair of shoes a-piece.

"How would you feel about putting on our purchases and hittin' up that cabaret club down-town? We shopped through lunch so Ah think we can spoil ourselves for dinner and Ah hear the ain't cheap on the liquor in their cocktails, if'n y'know what Ah mean." Rogue grinned, heading back towards the car but not explaining further.

"I don't know what you're up too, Rogue but I'm willing to play along for now. Pink dress or green?"

"Green. They dress with style at that club."

This surprised Lorna, who had been expecting to put on the pink dress. She thought the green dress far too extravagant to wear to a simple dinner and a show type establishment. It wasn't until they had parked at the far back of the lot behind some dumpsters and Rogue produced a box of stage make-up that it triggered for Polaris what "dress with style" had meant.

"Is this a Drag Queen club?"

"Yes ma'am." Rogue confirmed.

"You think Gambit's been seeing a Drag Queen?" Lorna asked skeptically.

"Ah don't know what Ah think yet. Ah just know the damn fool ain't giving me any straight goddamn answers and has make-up stains all over his damn collars." Rogue grumbled.

"Talk is cheap. Lets find out." Polaris grinned, reaching for the make up and brought a smile back to Rogue's face.

"Ah knew you were the right person t'help me with this!"

 

 

“Ladies. Love the wigs.” A blonde androgynous looking Drag Queen in a slinky red number but sporting a neatly trimmed beard and the chest of the dress unlaced to reveal male pectorals greeted Lorna and Rogue as they walked into the darkened club.

At 5pm in late November is was already almost dark outside but the club had no windows and only the barest minimum of floor lighting. Everything else was reserved for the stage.

“Thanks shugah! Ah'ma diggin' dat dress.” Rogue purred, her voice dropped as low as she could manage and laying on her southern accent so thickly she was almost incomprehensible.

Confident that they were believable amateur drag queens Polaris and Rogue were escorted to a table with an excellent view of the stage and furnished with a pair of strong cocktails. A cosmo for Lorna and a whiskey sour for Rogue, who kept up an easy going dialogue with their waitress that left Polaris baffled. 

Words and phrases such as “fishy” and “ru-glue” and “hip padding” were being thrown around and whilst Polaris could infer some from the context, others left her looking at Rogue in utter confusion.

“How do you know all this shit?” Lorna asked, sotto-voice.

“Ah watch Drag Race, duh.” Rogue teased and when Lorna still looked confused she laughed, and added, “Which we will clearly be binge-watching seasons 4 – 7 of when we get home.”

Polaris consent to that was interrupted by the waitress bringing them a second round of drinks to tide them over through the 1st half of the show.

Lorna was enjoying the performers that she honestly forget that they were supposed to be looking for Remy LeBeau until an incredibly pretty drag queen in a full Marie Antoinette costume came mincing onto the stage. 

Like the host who had sat them, and setting this queen apart from the others, she chose not to wear bust padding, or even paint on breasts with contouring, instead leaving a pleasing contrast of male chest and feminine, filly costume with a tightly, nipped in corseted waist.

The wig, a glorious powder puff creation in pale blue was adorned with a bejeweled pirate ship and a volto mask with whited out eyes completed the queen's ensemble.

It wasn't until the gorgeous creation of frills and lace and lithe, dancers body on the stage started singing a bawdy song of double entendres in a mix of French and English that Polaris realized exactly what she was looking at.

“That's got to be her!” Rogue hissed, narrowing her green eyes, snake like, at the stunning drag queen. “I found one of the feathers from her pantaloons in Remy's trench coat last week.”

“Rogue...” Polaris looked at her friend, expressionless and voice deadpan, struggling to believe that Rogue couldn't see what seemed so obvious. “You dolt, that is Remy.” 

“Wat?” Rogue looked like someone had just thrown a bucket of ice water her on her and Polaris had to set down her own drink and grab Rogue's wrist to prevent the Southern Belle from spilling her cocktail down her front.

“I swear to God. That's Gambit.” Polaris asserted. Rogue's head jerked back and forth between Lorna and the stage several times.

It wasn't until _Marie Antoinette_ lifted up her skirt to flash and expanse of stocking'd leg as the crowd cheered that Rogue actually believed it. She would have known those legs, stockings or no, anywhere.

“Oh. Mai. Gawd.”

“You think he knows we're here?” Polaris questioned, polishing off her cosmo. She honestly doubted he'd be able to see past the edge of the stage with the volto mask on,

“No, but he's gonna!” Rogue declared enthusiastically, reaching behind herself. She gave a bit of a wiggle, and to Lorna's amusement, managed to shimmy off her strapless bra. Rogue twirled it around her head a couple times to build momentum and whipped it onto the stage directly at _Marie Antoinette's_ feet.

 _Marie Antoinette_ tittered in amusement as the crowd laughed. She scooped up the bra with one slippered foot, kicking the lingerie up and catching it on her wig without missing a beat of her song as the everyone clapped and cheered , including Rogue and Polaris.

“Remy bought me that damn bra. He bettah recognize it!” Rogue told Lorna over the applause that continued until _Marie Antoinette_ exited the stage.

Rogue's gambit paid off as shortly after the house lights came up for intermission and very cowed looking Remy Lebeau, now sans costume and dressed in simple black slacks and button down, came over carrying another round of drinks for Rogue and Polaris as well as a scotch for himself.

“ _Chere_ , Lorna.” Remy greeted them. Lorna accepted her drink, already feeling quite merry from the 1st two. “I believe dis belong t'you, _chere_?”

He offered her back her bra and Rogue took it, shoving it into her purse with a forgiving smile.

“Why didn'tcha jes TELL me where you were goin' Rem?”

“Didn't t'ink' yer'd quite understand dis particular quirk o'mine.” Remy muttered into his scotch, not meeting Rogue's eyes.

“Well yer wrong there. Ah happen t'like men who can rock eyeliner and a contour and a corset, than you VERY much, Monsieur Lebeau.”

“Hearts not parts.” Polaris supplied helpfully and the next table over, who had been unrepentantly eavesdropping, cheered and suggested another round.

“Cheers t'that!” Remy laughed and knocked back his scotch in one go.


	9. “Bobby, you done fucked up, son.”

“If I keep this up Gold team is going to think that I'm a goddamn alcy as well as a whack job.” Lorna muttered, picking her way carefully up the gravel path to the front door, and equally wobbly Rogue beside her.

“Are we sure we're not?” Rogue questioned, flailing for something to steady herself and finding the cool stone wall of the mansion.

Remy, the only one fit to drive, had dropped the inebriated pair as close to the front door as he could before taking the Jeep back to the garage. The girls had changed out of their Drag Queen finery after Rogue had decided she HAD to have a double bacon cheeseburger with BBQ sauce or the world was most definitely going to end. 

Lorna had sucked down a diet coke, hoping to water down some of the liquor in her stomach but it hadn't helped as much as she had hoped.

They managed to get inside without anyone noting their ridiculous state, however it didn't take long for Rogue to realize the burger was not going to play nice with the whiskey in her stomach and bolted for the nearest bathroom.

Lorna was debating her chances of making it to her room without anyone seeing her when Jubilee popped out of a dark corner beside her, startling her and causing her to shriek momentarily.

“Shhhhhh. Come with me. Quietly.” Jubilee warned, gripping Polaris' arm and escorting her rapidly in the direction of Lorna's room. The magnetists pickled brain was moving to slow question was the hell was going on as Jubilee dragged Polaris into her own room and pulled her to crouch down beside the bed, leaving the door slightly ajar and the light off.

It wasn't unusual for the door to Lorna's room to be open. Most of the X-Men kept their bedroom doors open unless they wanted to be left alone. In the years that the mutants had been living and working at the Mansion bedroom doors had developed their own unspoken code.

Whatever Jubilee was planning did not take long to come to fruition as, within a couple moments, Lorna could clearly see a figure, furtive and checking over its shoulder, sidle into the room. 

Her view was hampered by the bed although she was reasonably confident that it was male.

It made a beeline for the coat rack where Lorna's favorite jacket hung innocently.

The leather jacket, Affliction brand and dark teal green, was not even close to Lorna's usual style but she had fallen in love with it and the entirety of X-Force had pooled their money to buy her the $600 designer creation. She rarely wore it anymore, as she had had one last growth spurt after its purchase and it barely fit her, but she loved it all the same and frequently swore she would be buried in it.

The creeping shadow helped itself to the jacket and was about halfway to home free when the door suddenly shut itself under one of Nightcrawler's 3 fingered hands, his prehensile tail flicking on the light switch to reveal Bobby Drake clutching the jacket.

Kurt had blended into the shadows so well that, with his eyes closed, no one had even known he was there, least of all Bobby who froze in the middle of the room.

“I really do not zink zat zat is quite your colour.” Kurt suggested, leaning against the wall and unmoving, his hand still pressed against the door. His German accent, faint enough to be only pleasantly noticeable in normal circumstances, was now playing in his voice thick enough to distort his words. Something that only happened when he was very amused, or very angry.

“Bobby, you done fucked up, son.” Jubilee stated, standing up,revealing herself and Lorna who struggled to understand what was going.

“Let me guess, Lorna was not appropriately grateful at your heroic return of her bracelet and you thought you'd try again with ze jacket?” Kurt accused, an almost playful tone to his voice despite the malevolent expression written across his blue features.

Bobby floundered for something to say. His ready wit, which was always good for a one liner or a practical joke, was known to desert him in stressful situations, such as being caught in a lie.

“Seriously, Bobby?” Lorna snapped, her alcohol good mood deserting her. “We are never, ever, getting back together. Like, ever!”

“Then why did you kiss me the other night?” Bobby snapped.

“I was drunk!” Lorna snapped. “If you'd been Alex I'da been making out with Alex.”

It was a low blow and she knew it. Bobby had always been over-sensitive to what he perceived as Alex Summers stealing “his” girl in Polaris, even though she was her own woman and had never claimed to be anything but. 

“Yeah, well your jacket is ugly and makes you look fat.” Bobby shot back with an equally low blow and threw the jacket on the ground like a toddler having a fit.

“Oh!” Lorna gasped, storming over there and literally low blowing him by punching him in the dick and sending him crashing to the floor to curl up, whimpering, in the fetal position.

Jubilee winced and Kurt crossed his legs delicately, unable to help but cringe as Lorna snatched up her jacket and snarled. “Get out of my room!” at Bobby.

“I don't think he's going to be walking for a little while Lorna.” Jubilee offered helpfully.

“I'll 'port him to the infirmary.” Kurt offered, failing to keep the chuckle out of his voice as he knelt down next to the cowering Bobby “Sorry for the bumpy ride, _mein Freund._ ”

Frankly, he considered Bobby having deserved it for attempting to manipulate Polaris. She had been used and abused and discarded and if, as Bobby claimed, he still loved her, Nightcrawler really thought that Iceman of all people should be more understanding of her sensitivity to those who would attempt to coerce her.

The men disappeared in a puff of acrid scented smoke and a familiar “bamf” sound, leaving Jubilee and Polaris alone.

Polaris turned instantly to Jubilee, clutching her jacket to her chest possessively.

“Okay, what the hell was all that about?” Lorna demanded.

“Well, Bobby....”

“No! Hang Bobby. I mean Kurt. He was... cheerful! And, actually had emotions in his voice!” Lorna pointed out, trying to wrap her head around it.

The apparent personality change between Nightcrawler behind closed doors and Nightcrawler in public, or on missions, was startling to Lorna. All of a sudden she remembered how jovial he had been when she had been too drunk to walk as they watched youtube in the bathtub.

That Kurt, compared to the disconnected, 3 steps removed from reality Kurt that she had witnessed on the Mannite Mission was such a dichotomy that she would have easily believed they were two different mutants. 

“Kurt's always been happiest when he's helping someone.” Jubilee shrugged, not thinking too much of it.

“Maybe.” Lorna mused as the vampire moved to take her leave. “Oh! Thank you, by the way, for catching Bobby in whatever the hell he thought he was doing.”

“You're welcome. It was Kurt's idea.” Jubilee smiled, flashing her fangs before letting herself out and closing the door behind her.

Lorna instantly she felt she owed Kurt an expression of gratitude and went in search of the velvet furred teleporter. He had returned to his room and shut the door behind him and, despite the unspoken code, Polaris knocked on it.

Nightcrawler opened the door with an unreadable expression, his eyes glowing and making the shadows beneath his eyes even more prominent. 

Lorna, despite her intention to thank him for his help, took one look at his expression and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug. The physical affection clearly took him by surprise as for a heart-beat he didn't react before his arms came around her tightly.

“What was that for?” Kurt asked when Polaris released him.

“Free, you can have another if you like but after that it will cost you.” Polaris shot back playfully and actually earned a short, bark of almost laughter from Nightcrawler, which emboldened her. “Honestly, you just looked like you could use a hug.”

“I'm sure I did.” Kurt agreed, stepping back to allow Lorna into his room and closing the door behind her.

“You still do.” Lorna declared but quickly changed tactic when she saw a deep scowl settle over Kurt's blue features. “But! I'm sure your best-friends have hounded you about that enough so I won't.”

“Danke.” Nightcrawler responded with asperity. “You know Kitty well, I see.”

“I actually don't. I have only been on a team with her for a few days, after all. Still, I've already managed to get wasted, have a borderline psychotic episode and convince everyone I'm crazy, eject some teenagers from the planet and punch a team-mate in the dick. Clearly, if there was some kind of award for most successful 1st week with a super team, I should be winning it.”

Kurt chuckled softly.

“I don't think you should hold yourself responsible for Bobby's gas-lighting.”

“True. Thank you, by the way, for you help with that and for not telling me off for punching him. I know its wrong of me to react with violence but he deserved that!”

“Lorna, please, there is no need to explain.” Kurt reassured her. “What Bobby was doing was very wrong. Not only because a relationship based on one party manipulating the other can never truly be consensual but also because of who you are. Frankly, if you responded to every person who played you like a puppet with a punch in the dick you'd probably spend a lot less money on therapy.”

Lorna mulled over his statement for a moment or two, a cold feeling in the pit of her stomach before she muttered;

“So you think I'm crazy too.”

“No. I think you are Lorna.” Kurt corrected, shaking his head. “But to not acknowledge that you have been treated very badly by very many would to be blind to everything you have over-come.”

_Your friends will. Everyone is else is just background noise. -_ Doctor Samson's words played in her mind in response to Kurt's softly spoken statement. Although he said it a different way it really boiled down to the same thing. It wasn't that Nightcrawler thought she was insane, it was that, as her friend, he was sensitive to all that she had been through and respected that, at times, she might over-react to certain stimuli because of it. 

“I'm not sure the others see it quite like that but, I'm glad you do.” 

She wasn't used to being respected in quite the way Kurt respected people. Too often people had used her for her powers and for her potential. It was unusual to be accepted for exactly who she was in that moment without there being any designs on her future, or expectations because of her past. Like a 2 year old testing their parent's limits and rules Polaris was seized with a sudden, impish desire to test Kurt to see how honest he would truly be: “Who is Meggan?” 

Kurt sighed deeply leaving Polaris to hastily add; “On the Mannite Mission.... you called me Meggan. I was just wondering who she was.” 

“She was an old team-mate, and unrequited love. The Mannite was a psionic, I was seeing her in your place.” Kurt explained lightly, confusing Polaris. 

His tone was so light and it honestly seemed genuine to Lorna. He hardly seemed as heart-broken over it as Jubilee's words had implied, more just annoyed by the question like one might be if they were asked the same thing over and over despite their answer never changing. Her confusion showed intensely on her features. Polaris had never been good at hiding her emotions, leading Kurt to ask; 

“Is something the matter, Lorna?” 

“No.” 

“I have given you nothing but honesty, you could at least return the favor.” 

Lorna felt that rebuke in her gut as a sense of guilt kicked her squarely in the stomach. 

“The others told me you were still in love with Meggan. That that's why you're so...so.... looking like you need a hug.” Polaris admitted. 

“Heartbroken?” Kurt suggested. 

“Yes but when you talk of her, you don't seem particularly cut up about it.” 

“I'm not. I would prefer not to talk of it, Lorna. But I appreciate that you tried.” Kurt smiled as if trying to reassure her but it didn't quite reach his eyes. As much as she hated it she found herself respecting his wishes and wishing him goodnight. 

_I will make you talk to me Kurt Wagner. I will get to the bottom of this. If not Meggan, and if not Logan, then what?_


	10. He is way hotter when he's blue.

If Storm noticed the chilliness between some of her team members she didn't comment on it. Kurt and Bobby had never been particularly close, and even though Kitty had apologized it made sense that Lorna would have some lingering resentment for the bracelet incident.

Storm did note that Bobby and Lorna were staying on opposite ends of the Blackbird during mission for the next few weeks however she didn't comment on that either, considering that to be for the best.

Still, it did occur to Storm after a series of Missions that had kept the team on their toes for the better part of 3 weeks that some R and R and morale building might be a good idea.

To that end she declared a mandatory margaritas and movies night at the local mall, no refusals allowed.

The irony of being forced to socialize outside of “work” hours as a way to boost morale was not lost on the team and sent Kitty heading for Lorna's bedroom door a few minutes shy of when they were supposed to meet in the garage.

The door was slightly open and Lorna was just finishing straightening her green locks when Kitty poked her head in.

“Hi.” Kitty chirped. She figured she was at least partially to blame for this mandatory team bonding experience and she had better pull her head in and do something about it before Storm made it a weekly requirement.

“Oh, hello Kitty.” Lorna forced a smile she didn't really feel.

“I come baring a peace-offering.” Kitty announced, holding out a plain brown paper bag with wicker handles.

“Why, we're not at war?” Polaris said skeptically, setting down the straightener.

“You know why. I was mean to you and you deserved better than an apology mumbled at my oatmeal. Like Kurt pointed out I wouldn't want to be treated like that so I shouldn't go around treating others like that. So I'm sorry.”

Lorna smiled at mention of Nightcrawler, although Kitty misread it as a smile of forgiveness.

For 2 weeks now Lorna had been noting Kurt's movements and his conversations. If he had been talking with someone else on the team she would find an excuses to talk to him to judge his mood. She never mentioned his withdrawn behavior, or Meggan, or even Logan. She simply did her best to be around without conditions or exceptions.

After careful observation she had come to a theory on what was going on with everyone's favorite teleporter. He was heartbroken but not over Meggan or Logan.

What was hurting him was the still living friends who wanted their fun-loving fuzzy elf back without respecting what that man had been through. As an outsider without a long history with him she had an outsiders perspective and believed she understood what he wanted. 

More than anything he wanted someone who accepted him, right now, exactly as he was at that moment, as he had done for Lorna. She found herself in a unique position to be the type of friend that he was missing, and mourning.

She still wasn't sure why he had chosen to withdraw and cut himself off from his friends rather than talking to them but she could make an educated guess that he had tried and their failure to shut up and listen had caused him to develop it as a manner of coping.

They expected him to “get over” Wolverine's death and go back to normal but that normal didn't exist anymore. He had changed but their perception of him hadn't and it wounded him deeply, something Lorna was only too familiar with and had struggled with herself.

The gift from Shadowcat proved to be a jacket.

“I know its not exactly the same but it was the closest I could find.” Kitty offered. Lorna's favorite Affliction jacket was dark teal, and bomber style. This one was navy blue and moto-style but the same brand and with a similar “punk rock” styling that the brand was known for. 

Polaris genuinely smiled at the thoughtful gift.

“Thanks, I really like it!” it wasn't a lie and she quickly slipped off the black trench coat she was wearing to throw on the new jacket even though it didn't match her outfit.

“Great. You wanna head down together?” Kitty offered, feeling like her duty had been done and they could be on good terms from here out. 

“Sure.” Lorna snagged her purse and they made quick time to the rendezvous with the others. Bobby and Sam were already there along with Storm and Colossus.

“Hey everyone!” Kitty called, giving a wave.

“Who is that?” Lorna asked, spying an unfamiliar blonde standing by Storm, his blue jeans and white button down hugging a lithe, dancers body. It was only when a hand, in permanent Vulcan salute, raked through the blonde hair as he chuckled at something Sam said that Polaris realized she was looking at Kurt in an image inducer.

 _Ooooh noooooo_ – Lorna thought to herself, her pulse going into double time as she walked closer. She was suddenly very thankful that no one on the team had enhanced hearing because her heart felt like a sledgehammer in her chest.

“Good evening ladies.” Kurt smiled lightly, that pleasant baritone and teasing hint of accent made Lorna's knees go weak.

She felt her hand reflexively go to her cheek and covered it to flick her hair in front of her face to hide her blush. She gave a tight smile and marched herself to the vehicle they were planning to drive to the mall in.

 _I am a terrible, terrible person._ \- Lorna realized, turning her face towards the window and making her body language read very clearly that she wanted to be left alone. She had never thought, or felt, that way about Nightcrawler before but seeing him looking like her exact “type” had had a devastating effect on her equilibrium.

She watched the others board in the reflection of the windows and squirmed uncomfortably in her seat as Kurt boarded, his movements graceful and fluid. She had always known he had a good body, she had seen him naked, after all but it had never really had any kind of affect on her until he wasn't blue.

 _I'm traitor to mutants everywhere._ \- Lorna winced behind her hand, pressing two fingers to her brow as if she were suddenly afflicted with a splitting headache. She willed the seat beneath her to swallow her whole but it remained stubbornly solid.

She was so acutely ashamed of herself that she thought she was going to vomit.

“I can't do this.” Lorna announced shooting up and making to bolt. She needed to call Dr. Samson before she hurt someone, or herself.

Storm took one look at the expression on Lorna's face, noting that the magnetist looked fit to weep and nodded, standing aside from the door of the vehicle so Lorna could exit.

“Join us later, if you feel capable of it.” Storm suggested.

“Thank you!” Lorna replied, eternally grateful that Storm hadn't stubbornly stuck to her guns and insisted that Lorna accompany them on what was supposed to be a mandatory event.

 

 

“Doctor Samson here?”

“I'm a terrible person!” Lorna sobbed, crawling into her cupboard clumsily.

“Lorna?”

“I'm... an...... awful human being.... and ...a....a...a traitorous mutant and.... unfit.... to be called Magneto's daughter!” Lorna sobbed.

“Where are you?” Dr Samson asked. He had a series of questions he tended to ask Lorna that, no matter what the emergency, ususally proved a solid method of judging her mental state.

“In... my ..c...closet.” Lorna hiccuped.

“Ok. Good. We can deal with this. You are not a terrible person.”

“I aaaaaammm!” Lorna wailed.

“Tell me why you think this way?”

“Because I'm not...” she sniffed loudly. “...attracted to Nightcrawler when's he is blue.”

That was a new one for Lorna and left Leonard fumbling for something to say. 

“I'm going to need a little context, Lorna. Blue?”

Slowly, and through much sobbing and sniffing Lorna managed to get out the entire story. Her own interest in being Kurt's friend, how he was one of the few people she had ever met who was completely honest with her and she honestly felt respected her.

How happy she had been to be a member of the “Kurt had to baby sit my drunk ass” club and how much she trusted him.

“And he's blue, with fur and glowing yellow eyes and a tail and his hands look kind of like a Vulcan salute but he only has 2 fingers and thumb which are over thick.”

“I know who you're talking about now. I've never met him but I've seen him before on the news.” Doctor Samson could finally bring to mind the person whom Lorna had been speaking of.

“I feel so awful. I couldn't believe how badly I reacted. I swear if we had been alone I'd be pregnant right now.”

Dr Samson was thankful that Lorna had stopped crying and was able to at least see a little humor in the situation. 

“Lorna, I don't know Nightcrawler but, I find it hard to accept the idea that you, of all people, would be having trouble accepting someone for being a mutant.”

“I accept him, of course, no one should ever be anything but exactly what they are born as! But if I truly believe that then why am I'm not attracted to him until he isn't blue!” Lorna insisted.

“You're not attracted to your other team-mates.” Dr Samson pointed out reasonably.

“No but I mean, they're still nice to look at. Piotr is too muscled and Sam is too skinny but, you know, they're still attractive guys. Most of the X-men are.”

“If you don't think of Nightcrawler as an attractive male, what do you think of him as?”

“I don't know. I guess I didn't really think of him like that at all. I didn't really know I was a race traitor until this moment.”

“Lorna, calm down. You are not a race traitor. Human sexuality is a strange and mercurial thing. There could be a hundred and one reasons you don't find this particular team mate attractive that has nothing to do with the fact that he is blue.”

“Then why was I so aware of him as an attractive guy when he wasn't blue?” Lorna demanded. If there was a better conclusion than the one she had leaped to, she was all ears for it. 

“Lorna, how do you feel about your green hair today?” Doctor Samson asked, seemingly deviating sharply from the issue at hand and making Lorna scowled.

“Same as I always do. I hate it.” Lorna said plainly. The only thing stopping her from pouring a bucket of bleach on it was that it felt so disloyal to everything she said that believed in. 

Her Father was right. She shouldn't have to apologize for being a mutant. She shouldn't have to hide her hair. She shouldn't have to live in fear of being considered sub-human because of what she looked like. She knew that logically but sometimes, she struggled to make herself feel that.

“And how does Kurt feel about being blue?” Doctor Samson questioned.

“I've never asked him but, I don't think he'd be normal if he could. The High Evolutionary made us all human once and from what I understand Kurt was absolutely devastated and that he would rather have been dead.”

“Could it be that someone like Kurt, who is joyful in their uniqueness, is very confronting for someone like you, who struggles to see herself as attractive?” Dr Samson suggested. “It is possible that, in order to avoid having to deal with such a challenging concept of someone who is inhuman looking and happy about it you subconscious caused you to view Nightcrawler as an asexual entity. Someone you weren't even aware of as “nice to look at” in the same way you see your other male counterparts.”

In the dark cupboard Lorna went very still and so silent that Dr Samson had to struggle to hear her breathing to be sure she was even still there. He let her ruminate on that in silence for a while. “I believe that seeing Kurt in an image inducer bypassed that mental block and what you felt was not an attraction to him when he wasn't blue but an attraction to him as a male human being. Knowing you as well as I do Lorna I find that a much more believable scenario than to think that you were a race-traitor.”

“I... I suppose that does seem more likely.” Lorna admitted. 

“Think on it some more, Lorna. And, if he is open to it, speak to Nightcrawler about his own challenges with growing up blue. Oftentimes the things that we find confronting are the triggers than can bring the most personal growth.”

“I will.” Lorna promised. “Thank you for taking my call.”

She disconnected the call but, as before, stayed in her closet without immediately crawling out.

What Dr Samson had said did make a lot of sense. She had watched Kurt get undressed and sat in a bathtub with him, completely naked and not felt even the slightest flicker of attraction. Which she supposed should have alerted her that something odd was going on because there were few things Lorna liked better than the naked male form.

She remembered watching as Nightcrawler's shirt went up, exposing washboard abdominal muscles and a perfect, v-cut that drew the eye to his hip bones. Lorna bit her lip, feeling her face get hot and a blush crawled down her chin to her breasts and ….lower.

She could remember, in sudden intense, vivid detail the way Kurt's hair had flopped into his softly glowing, golden eyes and the easy grace of his hands as he had swept it away.

With no small amount of relief, and a large degree of shock Polaris remembered how diligently she had kept her eyes above his ribs because he was so nice looking and she was drunk and she didn't quite trust herself.

“What the hell was I thinking? He is way hotter when he's blue!”


	11. Christmas Eve at Xavier's Mansion

“Working on Christmas Eve? Shame on you, Henry McCoy.” Storm teased, her voice was deep for a woman but pleasant, like a purring cat and full of rich affection.

“Ororo, my dear!” Hank smiled. Her intrusion into his laboratory was always a welcome one. The teams had seen each other only in passing through most of late November and December but, as always seemed to happen, all the X-Men both old and new, came home to the Mansion for the Holidays.

“I suppose you are too busy to indulge me in a card game or two?” Storm wheedled, holding up a deck.

Hank's affection for the card game gin was well known and Storm was rewarded when his furred face split with a wider still grin.

“For gin? Never!” Hank declared, stripping off his lab coat and escorting Storm to the much more comfortable office and sitting area that annexed his laboratory. Despite his gargantuan size Beast's hands were light and graceful as he took the deck from Ororo and shuffled them.

He offered them to her to split, which she did before they were momentarily interrupted by Rachel and Jubilee. The teachers were dressed as Santa's elves and carrying trays of cookies and eggnog. Shogo, resplendent in a Rudolph costume, was being carried along in a telekinetic radio flyer wagon courtesy of Rachel.

“Cookies?” Rachel offered.

“And spiked egg nog?” Jubilee added, setting down her tray to reveal it had both eggnog and southern comfort.

“What are you doing with that, young lady?” Storm asked Jubilee, unable to help herself. Vampire or no Jubilee was barely 18 when she was turned and Storm was very well aware of when Jubilee's 21st birthday should be, 3 years from now.

“Servin' it, not drinking it, 'Ro.” Jubilee promised. Both Team-Leaders declined cookies but each took a glass of spiked eggnog to savor as they played cards.

The merry trio departed in search of more friends to infect with Christmas Spirit leaving Hank to deal himself and Storm a hand.

Storm shuffled her cards a couple times in her hand, assessing the best strategy for victory before lightly asking;

“I do not suppose you might trade me Robert Dacosta for Bobby, would you?” 

She delicately drew another card from the deck before laying down an 8 of clubs as her discard.

“Unfortunately not, my dear.” Hank rumbled, peering through a pair of horned rimmed glasses that were perched precariously at the end of his thick nose, assessing his own hand and if that 8 would benefit him at that particular moment. “As much as I would enjoy having one of my closest friends and frequent co-conspirators on my team I most faithfully promised Sunspot that at no time would he be called to be on a team with Cannonball.” 

“I was not aware there was conflict between Sam and Robert.” Storm mused, looking to Beast for clarification.

“Bad blood over Tabby.” Hank rumbled, declining the 8 to draw a card. It was a 4 and he promptly discarded it.

“Still? It’s been years!” Ororo had thought that beef long since buried, as most of them did. She selected the 4 and discarded another 8.

“Again, rather than still, I believe. Might I inquire as to why the sudden desire to decamp Bobby?” Hank asked, taking another look at his cards since he had been offered a second chance on an 8.

“His ego is not well handling the attention his ex-paramours are not paying him.” Storm replied silkily. She supposed she really should have considered what would happen when adding Polaris to a team that already held Shadowcat for Bobby to angst over.

“I'd be happy to take Polaris off your hands.” Beast offered slightly too quickly and earned himself a sharp frown from Storm.

“I will not punish Lorna for Robert Drake misdeeds. You know too well how she would react to being sent away to even dare make such a suggestion, Henry.” The Gold Team-Leader was offended on Polaris' behalf for the suggestion and let it show.

“Indubitably. I stand corrected, and penitent.”

“Good. Now hurry up and decided if you want that 8 or not. This is gin, not risk.”

“Yes, Ororo.” Hank chuckled good naturally, declining the 8 again and drawing from the deck. He kept that card and discarded a jack. “You could simply release Bobby and call up another. Alison or Northstar, for example.”

Both named mutants, along with a handful of others, had returned to the Mansion for the Christmas season. The annual Christmas brunch was a party few missed. Storm could have had her choice of any of them and had, in fact, already received polite offers of assistance from 1 or 2.

“I hate the idea of leaving him to seethe and build resentments.” Storm sighed, drawing a card and, with a quick shuffle of her hand, discarded a 2 that she had picked up earlier, having decided to go a different route to building a winning hand.

“Rogue and Psylocke certainly would be adept at shutting down any of Bobby's more idiotic ideas.” Hank mused. “I'd offer you Gambit in exchange but he and Rogue have been shockingly happy lately. I truly believe I have never witnessed their relationship so healthy and, forgive me, I cannot stand to part them.”

“There is nothing to forgive, old friend. I confess that even as brief as our Teams' interactions have been recently, I had noticed that they appear to be enjoying none of the drama that usually follows them.” Storm acknowledged. 

“They take an afternoon off together, no questions asked, no intrusions, twice a month and I'll be damned if they don't come home giggling together like newlyweds and reeking of grease-paint every time. I dare not ask.” Hank chuckled, remembering his eggnog and taking a gentle sip. The cordial class looked like it belonged in a doll house in his large hand and although he could fit only 2 fingers and a thumb around the glass his grip was precise.

“I am glad for them. Although I must own to disappointment. Gambit might have coaxed a smile or two out of Nightcrawler.” Storm mused.

“Ah. Yes.” Beast rumbled, a pensive expression crossing his features as they played in silence for several moments, each considering the behavior of their worrisome team-mate. “I do not believe even Jubilee took Logan's death as hard as Kurt did.”

“Or myself.” Storm pointed out. Logan had been her lover prior to his death, after all.

“Of course.” Hank nodded, having not intended to slight her grief. 

They lapsed into a companionable silence again, broken only when Storm drew a King from the deck and laid down her hand with a smile.

“Gin!”

“Blackguard!” Hank accused playfully. “I was 1 card away. Again?”

“Certainly.” Storm smiled indulgently and sipped her eggnog while Hank arranged the cards. She looked meditatively out of the lone window at the cold, grey skies beyond the pane. “Lorna notes Kurt's presence in a way I cannot explain.”

“Oh?” Beast's thick eyebrows shot up, the glasses slipping down at the same time and giving him a truly comical expression. He had known Lorna a very long time and withdrawn, disconnected Nightcrawler seemed like the very anti-thesis of what would draw her attention. He would have been less shocked if Storm had announced that Lorna had been paying attention to Shadowcat. 

“I cannot say that she watches him, or that she pays him any attention that she does not give her other team-mates.” Storm mused, turning her blue eyes to the cards that Hank was dealing. “But... “

Storm struggled to exactly name what she had been witnessing for the past month. Hank, deeply intrigued, pressed for more information.

“But?” He prompted, picking up his cards.

“At the beginning and end of every Mission, or training session she notes where he is. It’s so quick, and so subtle. A glance is all but... it’s something.” Storm explained, gathering her own cards to assess them. “And... after every time they interact, even briefly, she looks fleetingly surprised.” 

“That, at least, is not confounding.” Hank chuckled, drawing a card to begin the game seeing that Storm would not, deeply lost in thought.

“How so?”

“Lorna's type has ever been blonde haired blued eyed men with the emotional repertoire of a goat and a tendency to be neglectful. She probably has not the faintest idea what to do with a blue haired blonde eyed man who treats her as an equal.”

Storm could not help but snigger, just a little, at the piercing accuracy of Hank's words.

“If Polaris has a mind to play manic-pixie-dream-girl to Kurt's melancholy she'll get as far as Rachel did, I suspect.” Storm speculated into her cards.


	12. Magneto's Emotionally Compromised Daughter

Christmas Day at the Mansion had always been an event. The woman in charge of preparing the lunches for the students, before unexpectedly growing a 2nd set of arms, had been a French trained chef and looked forwards to, every Christmas, being handed a blank check and putting on a cornucopian feast for as many mutants as Xavier's lauded halls could hold.

All grudges were forgiven at Christmas.

The festivities were usually scheduled as a Brunch, although it almost always ended up as a dinner. This plan allowed time for the inevitable super villain attack, or emergency that popped up every single time so that they could simply push the celebration back a couple hours, rather than cancel it altogether.

Someone had had to idea to have a cocktail party theme for this years festivities and, rather than cramming everyone into the kitchens and common rooms at the front of the Mansion they had taken advantage of the rarely used but opulent ballroom at the back of the estate.

Kurt was just walking into the foyer when an unfamiliar pair of hands gripped his arm and a warm, similarly accented voice to his own purred;

“Hi Stranger.”

“Amanda! I did not know you were planning to visit.” Kurt started, confused and surprised by his ex-girlfriends sudden appearance.

“It's all our fault, I'm afraid.” Brain Braddock's voice boomed and Kurt found himself heartily clapped on then back and then treated to a crushing hug by Meggan. “I decided to take Meggan on a second honeymoon and we stopped in New York where we happened to run into Amanda.”

“When we realized yourself, Rachel, Piotr AND Kitty were right down the road...”

“Instead of spread out across time and space.” Brian shot an indulgent smile at Kitty who had joined them with Rachel and Piotr.

“...we couldn't resist coming to visit.” Amanda Stefton finished. She looked amazing in red leaning provocatively onto his arm, back slightly arched to display her breasts to their best advantage. Her gown, a slinky creation of shimmering red lame had gathered, toga like straps that sat wide on the very round of Amanda’s gracefully inclined shoulders. 

She was making it very clear that he was her primary reason for visiting.

Not one for tuxedo’s Kurt himself had forgone the finery that Brian wore and instead was clad in a black silk shirt with a mandarin style collar and simple, charcoal slacks.

“Now, where is that sister of mine?” Brian asked. Kurt turned to respond and promptly felt his jaw unhinge itself as Lorna and Rogue walked by, laughing amiably into their glasses of wine.

“Holy shit. Is that Lorna?” Rachel marveled.

The out-of-character colour choice was worth a second look all on its own. Lorna's cascading green curls, exposed legs and bubblegum pink mini dress, whose hem-line was barely an inch away from being completely scandalous prompted staring.

She had coupled the dress with a leather moto jacket of a punk-rock theme and a pair of sky scraper heels that was currently making Gambit, Kitty and Jubilee exceedingly jealous. 

Kurt flicked his eyes away before he could be caught lusting over Polaris. It was times like this that he was thankful for his lack of pupils. It was devilishly hard for anyone to track his line of sight thanks to the uniform saffron of his eyes but that dress was driving him quietly mad. She was the only one not in a floor length gown and whilst all the other ladies had selected jewel tones, or metallics, the ridiculous bubble gum pink shade of her gown ensured that the eye was drawn to her.

Rogue had found a sophisticated green number for the occasion. Floor length, strapless and slit to her upper thigh the peeks of smooth skin, exposed when she shifted her weight, were about the only thing to pull peoples gaze away from Lorna as the pair walked by.

Remy, holding court with Storm and Hank had been sweet talked into manning the bar, much to the delight of Jubilee, who was having an entertaining time getting in his way under the guise of “learning” how to make cocktails.

 

“Dammit Rogue, I knew I should have worn the green dress. Everyone's staring at me.” Lorna scowled as they set their glasses on the bar for Remy to refill.

“They starin' because you're drop-dead gorgeous, girl!” Rogue told her. “Besides, we'd have looked like a plum ridiculous pair o'twinsies if you had worn the green dress.”

“I feel like a fool.”

“Hush, you look amazing and you know it.”

Lorna looked away from Rogue, wishing she had the words to explain to the Southern Belle what it was like to feel like a child playing dress up, like an impostor in someone else's borrowed finery.  
It was so easy to feel good in the dress in the store, where the only audience had been Rogue and a sales-woman looking to make a sale. Here, where there were so many beautiful women in so many gorgeous gowns, Lorna felt small and insignificant and far from on their level.

Storm in her white gown, shot through with silver looked like she was cloaked in clinging moonlight. Psylocke's wet-look black cheongsam could have been painted onto her skin it fit her so well. Kitty and Rachel were both in blue, one in navy and the other in royal, and looked like they just walked out of a Vogue photo shoot to Lorna's eye.

Even the unfamiliar blonde, clad in a simple silver metallic mermaid gown felt like she was casting a very long shadow over Polaris and the strawberry blonde in shimmering red, her hand tucked into the crook of Nightcrawler's arm, was trying Lorna's temper.

 _I'm jealous!_ \- Lorna realized with a shock, looking away from where Amanda and the other former members of Excalibur were making their way to one of the offset tables and chairs for a mini-reunion. 

 

“You’ve been quiet.” Amanda observed, annoyed with Kurt's polite disinterest with her advances. Although he was smiling and laughing along with the conversations he was contributing very little himself. He had to admit, he was having a wonderful time, even if Amanda was sitting as close to him as she could without sitting in his lap. 

Even if he had to studiously ignore Kitty and Rachel's attempts to shoot him sympathetic looks whenever he spoke to Meggan.

“I have a lot on my mind.” Kurt replied blandly, sometimes wishing he could shake his friends vigorously. He could only imagine the misguided pity-party Kitty was going to attempt to treat him too later.

“I could help take your mind off things.” Amanda offered seductively.

For a few moments Kurt was almost tempted to take her up on the unsubtle suggestion that they spend some time together but he was very well aware that her sudden flirtatiousness had a lot more to do with her own loneliness that any deep affection for him. 

Subconsciously she had always considered him a dependable, on-call back up plan and this wasn’t the first time she had shown up out of the blue.

“You are kind to offer but that ship has long sailed, Amanda.” Kurt told her with a charming smile. It had been too many years since they had been lovers.

“I had a feeling you’d say that.” Amanda commented in a resigned tone of voice. “I had hoped to stay but I will plan to leave after dinner whilst Meggan and Brian will stay until morning before departing for their honeymoon.”

“You are a beautiful woman, Amanda, I have no doubt you will find someone who worships you.” Kurt assured her, placing his hand over hers quickly. She smiled and gave his bicep a friendly squeeze.

“Just promise me you’re rejecting me because there’s someone else, and not so you can continue to mope and brood. You don’t smile enough, Kurt.” Amanda scolded him gently. 

“Yes, I know. Meggan said much the same. I must have been quite the topic recently.” Kurt chuckled when Amanda blushed guiltily.

“Well?” Amanda rallied, attempting to elicit her desired promise from him.

 

“Lorna, are you okay? You're literally snarling at everyone!” Rogue commented, drawing Lorna away from the bar area and back out towards to foyer to give them some privacy. “Hank was just asking what brand your jacket was. You damn near bit his head off.”

“I'm going to murder that strawberry blonde woman.” Lorna growled, fighting down an urge to hurl a house-plant through a window.

“Who, Amanda? Why? You don't even know her?!”

“Because!” Lorna began, then choked on the words that wouldn't come out. “Because.... I'm jealous.”

“Why? That dress she has on sure is pretty but you look out of this stratosphere, Lorna.” Rogue reassured her.

“It’s not about the damn dress.” Lorna paced, a wild, burning fire in her veins made her want to claw at the walls, or herself. She tore off her jacket, suddenly feeling like she was over-heating.

“Then, what? Christ, you look fit t'lose your damn mind! Lorna, talk to me.” Rogue urged. The last thing she wanted to see right now was Lorna having a break-down.

Lorna looked wildly at Rogue, willing the green eyed woman to understand, so that she herself could make sense of it.

“I'm...I'm... I'm just... jealous... I'm so incredibly, rage-fully jealous of her right now and.... and I think... the only rational explanation is that...I'm in love with Kurt.”

Her proclamation hung in the air like a gunshot and it took Lorna but surprise but, try as she might, she couldn't find the words to contradict or dispute it. It truly was the only logical conclusion and, once acknowledged, she had to admit that it felt correct. She didn't simply find Nightcrawler attractive and want to be his friend because she felt he needed one. She was in love with him.

"... For how long?!" Rogue gasped, staring at Polaris's face in shock.

“I don't know!” Lorna put her hand to her lips, bewildered with herself. "I didn't know I was until... just now."  
She snapped out of her sudden reverie with a scowl and grabbed for her jacket. “But I can't stand to think of them together for another second!”

“Lorna!” Rogue cried, making a grab for the green haired beauty and missing as Lorna turned sharply on her heel, throwing on her jacket and making a beeline for the Excalibur table.

 

 

“You're out of wine. Another?” Kurt asked silkily, deliberately avoiding Amanda's question. Kurt took the opportunity to excuse himself from the conversation to get her another.

A flash of pink caught his eye as he crossed the room to the bar and found that Lorna was striding towards him forcefully. 

“Another…whatever Amanda is drinking… please, Remy.” Kurt requested, setting the dirty glass on the counter. Jubilee took it and washed and chilled it whilst Gambit dug for the bottle of Chardonnay.

He turned to the approaching Polaris, worried about the look of fury written on her expressive features.

“Something the matter, _frueline?”_

The soft question, so full of concern for her took blew through Polaris' hot-headed rage like an ice-cube down the back of her shirt, instantly quelling her murderous fire.

“No, everything's just fine.” Lorna replied in a voice that didn't seem like her own and earning her a light smile from Kurt. He lifted a hand and tucked a piece of green fringe behind one ear for her. 

“May I tell you that you look stunning tonight?" 

"You think so?" Lorna questioned, her green eyes very wide and shimmering with hope

"I do not think a single person has been able to take their eyes off you all night.” Kurt assured her.

“You included?” her voice had an innocent, child-like quality that spoke of a deep insecurity that was begging to be soothed by his easy flattery. She felt something curl around her wrist and discovered his prehensile tail had taken a grip of her wrist. It raised her hand, which was delicately transferred to one of his own, velvet textured hands gracefully.

“Especially me.” Kurt promised, kissing her hand gently, his golden eyes vividly intense in the rooms soft lighting. 

"Your drink is ready, _Valentino_." Jubilee teased, reminding Lorna that they had an audience.

Gambit had set the glass of wine the bar but said nothing so as not to interrupt the moment Kurt and Lorna were apparently having. Unlike Jubilee he hadn't wanted to be a "cock-block".

Kurt collected it gently with graceful hands. People often assumed, thanks to the shape of his hands, that Nightcrawler would be clumsy but, as a highly skilled acrobat, that was far from the truth. 

"You must excuse me. Polaris. My friends are only staying a little while and I would like to visit with them as long as possible.”

"Oh, they're leaving? All of them? Even... Amanda?" Polaris couldn't help herself, tumbling over her words a little. A stupid, childish joy surged in Lorna's heart and she struggled and failed to not let it show on her face. Her emotions, as stupid and traitorous as they sometimes were, had always been her weakness. They were either vividly painted across her face for anyone to read or repressed so brutally that they exploded with violence later. She had no in between.

"Especially Amanda." Kurt assured her, the faintest hint of confusion in his voice and a slightly arched indigo eyebrow. He was obviously curious to her conflict with Amanda, a woman she barely knew, but it was Christmas and not the time to comment on it. All grudges were forgiven at Christmas, after all. Kurt turned away and Lorna turned to the bar victorious.

She didn't even bother hiding her smile, which looked half crazed to Gambit's assessing gaze his garnet on onyx eyes lingering on Lorna's face.

"Another drink, _mademoiselle_?" He offered, pointedly not asking about the pink elephant in the room as Kurt as had.

"A pretty pink cosmo to match my dress please." Polaris requested, suddenly feeling very much in the Christmas Spirit, after all.

Amanda was leaving. Amanda and her stupid red dress and her stupid pretty hair and her stupid pretty face that kept LOOKING at Kurt in a stupid way, would not be staying.


	13. "Lorna, would you please give us a moment?"

“I’m so sorry they are tormenting you in my name.” Meggan sighed, her full lips turned down as she walked. One arm was tucked around her husband’s waist, the other tucked companionably in the crook of Nightcrawler’s arm. 

They had walked such a way many a time and Brian had long since learned that feeling jealous of Meggan’s closeness to Nightcrawler was a reflection on his own issues and not a reflection on the true nature of Kurt and Meggan’s relationship.

The trio had seen Amanda Stefton safely installed into a taxi and none felt particularly like joining the party in the ballroom.

“You know how Kitty is.” Kurt sighed, escorting the Braddock’s to the guest room they would be staying in. “Once she has decided something nothing will change her mind.”

“You’ve tried talking to them, I’m sure?” Meggan pressed, she knew she couldn’t solve her friends’ problems but it was so intrinsic to her nature to try. Especially when it was supposedly she who was causing one of her best friends such pain.

“Of course but, again, you know how Kitty is, especially when she gets to gossiping with Rachel and Storm.”

“Perhaps I should talk to them.” Meggan mused, looking to Brian for validation that that would be a good idea.

“Don’t bother, anything you say will be twisted, or misinterpreted to fit their desired narrative and then gossiped to the others.” Kurt retorted, his tone bitter. He had been down this road before too many times to count.

“You don’t do yourself any favors you know, Kurt.” Brian observed slowly. He may not have been as quick witted as Kurt or Meggan but he was observant and often saw angles to a situation that others over-looked. “You’re too good natured and you continue to treat them as friends when they are not being your friends. Any one of them could come to you, about any subject, including ones that you have specifically asked them not to speak of and you will open your door for them.”

“What do you suggest? Shutting the door in Kitty’s face the next time she comes asking if I’m okay for the 68th time? You know that’s not my way.”

“That’s exactly what you should do.” Meggan urged.

“And tell her to fuck off while you’re at it.” Brian added.

“I could never curse at a lady!”

“She’s not acting like a lady if she isn’t respecting you. Nor is she acting like a friend and she needs to be told so. All of them do.” Brian insisted. “You never show your anger to anyone Kurt and it’s shooting you in the foot here.”

“Do you have anyone here you feel comfortable with?” Meggan asked anxiously as they turned a corridor and came to the correct doorway.

“Lorna.” Kurt said instantly. “Sam is always good for a chat about nothing in particular. Jubilee if she has time between teaching classes. I’ve put Shogo to bed for her a couple times here and there.”

Until a month ago, he would have named Bobby as well but the cryogenetic mutants antics with Lorna’s bracelet had left a sour taste in Kurt’s mouth and he found it difficult to freely trust Iceman the way he once had.

“I’m glad you have at least some. You know you’re always welcome to visit Braddock Manor if you need to get away for a while.” Meggan offered, pausing on the threshold of the room to give Kurt a tight hug.

Brian, British to his core, clapped Kurt on the shoulder consolingly before following his wife into the room. 

Nightcrawler chuckled at Brian’s awkwardness but the smile left his face as he teleported quickly to his own room.

The speed at which Lorna’s name had come to his lips surprised him, as had her obvious hostility towards Amanda earlier. Although Kurt could explain both things quite simply.

Polaris genuinely was his closest friend at the Mansion at that point in time. She may not have a long history with him as he held with the others but she showed him, in words and actions, that his time and attention was valuable to her.

Where Kitty fussed and hovered, assuming his mood for him under the guise of asking “how are you” in a saccharine, sympathetic tone Lorna simply checked in, treating him exactly as he presented himself. That was why he had named her so quickly and why she would have a problem with Amanda, who had hurt him once upon a time, albeit many years ago now.

The clock read 10 and despite the hour Kurt couldn’t say he was tired. He knew an argument with Kitty, or Rachel, or Storm, whichever one first noticed his absence from the party downstairs, would no doubt occur shortly. 

Almost everyone else remained downstairs after the food had been cleared away. Dazzler had possessed herself of a microphone and was working her way through her catalogue to the delight of those who felt like dancing.

He figured he may as well fill the bathtub while he waited for whoever showed up to tell him his thoughts and feelings and then lecture him why he needed to get over a depression he did not feel.

Brian’s insistence that Kurt ought to tell them to “fuck off” was seemingly less and less anathema to Kurt as he set the stopper in the giant, king size tub and set the taps running. 

The huge tub had been salvaged from one of Beast’s old rooms the last time the Mansion had been destroyed. For someone of Hank’s size, the tub was perfectly in scale. For Kurt is was large enough 2 people to stretch out comfortably shoulder to shoulder. As a downtime project Kurt and Logan had spent a couple lazy weekends pulling the heating element out of a therapeutic electric blanket and using it to line the tub as they worked their way through a couple 6 packs of beer.

As a result the tub could be heated with a simple flick of a switch, ensuring that the water never went cold. It may not have been to code but it was effective enough for Kurt.

 _Right on cue_ \- Kurt thought wryly as a rapid fire, insistent knock rang at his bedroom door and he teleported to the threshold of the room. He opened it and found Shadowcat, resplendent in her royal blue gown and prettily curled chestnut hair, on his doorstep.

“Must we have the same argument over, katzchen?” Kurt asked, he declined to invite her in, blocking the door with his body.

“Yes! Until you get over it and stop hiding away to mope and brood.” Kitty scolded, inviting herself in anyway by walking through the wall.

“Kitty! Zat is rude!”

“I don't care! We're worried about you. Tell us what you need. Help us help you.” Kitty begged.

“I need my friends to listen to me when I say I am not pining after a married woman or a dead man!” Kurt retorted sharply.

“If you're not, then what is your problem?”

“You won't listen, that is the problem. We have been over this and now you're going to roll your eyes at me and tell me I am in denial. And then I will be cross with you and tell you leave since I never invited you in in the first place. Kitty, how many times do we have to go through this?” Kurt demanded, exasperated.

Shadowcat opened her mouth to protest only to be jerked and flung backwards out of the room by an unseen force and deposited in the hallway by a grinning Polaris, who was more than happy to remove Kitty from Kurt’s presence. She was carrying an opened Christmas present under one arm and a half finished cosmo in the other.

“Want me to throw her out a window?” Lorna asked, posing against the door jam and sipping her cocktail. Kitty opened her mouth to speak and Lorna responded by shoving her further down the corridor with her magnetic powers without even so much as a glance at the brunette. Polaris taken off her jacket but the heels and scandalous pink dress remained. It showed just enough cleavage to draw the eye and Kurt was once again thankful for his lack of pupils and iris.

“Please don’t, Lorna.” Kurt sighed, and judged it not worth the drama. Shadowcat having phased through Lorna's magnetic restraints and made her way back to the door and followed Lorna into the room.

“This isn’t any of your business Lorna.” Kitty insisted.

“God, your voice is annoying.” Polaris retorted, unmoved by this. 

“Lorna, would you please give us a moment.” Kurt requested as Lorna knocked back the last of her cosmo.

“Fine, but I’m eavesdropping from the bathroom.” Polaris snorted. She tucked her empty martini glass into Shadowcat’s cleavage. “Here, make yourself useful.”

Kitty seethed, crossing her arms and glaring at Polaris who strutted off the bathroom to cede them some privacy while Kurt pressed his lips tightly together and struggled not to laugh. 

“Kitty, I asked you to leave. Believe what you will, I don’t care anymore, but the least you could do is respect my wishes in my own room.” Kurt maintained.

“Dammit Kurt, I’m worried about you!” Kitty insisted, still honestly believing that she was fighting to help her friend, rather than fighting her friend.

A hundred responses rose to Kurt’s lips but he said none of them. There was no point, he had said them all before and they had fallen on deaf ears. He simply stared at Kitty in silence until she gave up, hugged him once fiercely and removed herself from his room.

 _Perhaps it’s time I stepped down from Gold team_ – Kurt mused, then swiftly realized that that was not an option he was willing to take as it would mean he missed out on Polaris’ friendship. He was not willing to give up Lorna’s presence for the others’ poor behavior. – _Oh no! Lorna! My bath!_


	14. Her Beauty and The Moonlight Overthrew You

“I’m not even sorry.” Polaris grinned at Nightcrawler manically from his bathtub.

“ _Verdammt frueline!_ ”

“Scotch?” Lorna offered as a consolation prize and Kurt realized she was holding two glasses of the dark liquid. 

“I’ve heard worst ideas.” Kurt commented, reaching for the buttons on his shirt. He went to turn on the light but Polaris made a noise of protest. 

She had raised the blinds that covered the window for a reason. Kurt’s bedroom was on the 6th floor, the chance of anyone peeping in was slim to none. Her pink dress, underthings and shoes had been discarded haphazardly over the floor but they were easy to avoid with the moonlight streaming in.

Nightcrawler acquiesced to her unspoken request, missing the heated look that Lorna treated him to as his shirt went up and over his head and he kicked off his shoes. He quickly joined her in the tub and Lorna had to tell herself several times not to openly eye him up as he climbed in and settled into the deliciously warm water. 

There might not have been anything inherently sexual about nudity but there was about looking and touching and those were boundaries that Polaris violated as soon as she possibly could.

“Here, hold these a second?” Lorna asked, handing Kurt both glasses of scotch. She took advantage of his hands being full so that he could not physically prevent her from stretching out, not beside him but on top of him, and reclining her back against his front. She snuggled in for good measure.

“Er....?” Kurt questioned, suddenly finding himself looking down at a crown of green hair. He knocked back a large mouthful of the scotch and blinked several times but the scene remained unchained. 

He had become a naked lounge chair for an equally naked Polaris.

“Thanks.” She chirped, relieving him of one of the glasses of scotch as if completely innocent and her actions completely normal. Kurt struggled for somewhere to put his arm that wasn't on Lorna, and settled for draping it along the side of the tub. Lorna smiled and brushed her hand along it affectionately, discovering an interesting piece of Kurt's unique anatomy. “What on earth? Your fur is dry?!”

“My fur is so dense that it is water resistant.” Nightcrawler acknowledged simply. “A quick shower can wash off blood, or other particles I may happen to get on myself over the course of my day as an X-Man. However, I required a bath to soak and get water all the way down to the skin level”

“Well that's nifty.” Lorna commented, taking a small, experimental sip of scotch. “Hmmm, this doesn't taste nearly as much like old leather and burning as the last scotch I had did.”

“At $230 a bottle, it shouldn't.” Nightcrawler commented and Lorna gasped at the price he named.

“How do you know how much it costs?” Lorna asked, suspiciously. The bottle had been left in her room with no note.

“Who do you think helped Wolverine drink the Professor's liquor collection dry?” Kurt chuckled.

“You're such a devil, Kurt Wagner. What am I sitting on?”

“My tail.”

“Oh!” Lorna rocked herself onto her hip momentarily so that Kurt could swish the appendage out from under her rump. 

For some reason the situation of Lorna calling him a devil for his behavior while sitting on his demon-like tail struck Kurt as hilarious and he openly laughed for what felt like the 1st time in years. Lorna sat up, whipping around to look at him in surprise. 

“You're laughing! I've not heard you laugh in months!” She had heard him chuckle, or sometimes give a short, sharp exhalation that was almost laughter but not true, uninhibited laughter in long that she could remember. “You have such a nice laugh.”

“So I have been told.” Kurt said through his amusement, shoulders shaking a little as he took another sip of the fine scotch. 

“And your accent is coming back.” Lorna pointed out, knowing that it meant he was genuinely amused.

“It does zat.” Kurt agreed, still slightly snickering.

“I like it.” Lorna told him, turning and leaning back against him again with a happy sigh. 

In the dark the glow of his eyes painted a faint golden colour onto her green tresses. 

She sipped her scotch and draped her arm over his on the rim of the tub, letting her hand fall against his and stroking her fingertips against the velvet soft knuckles of his hand. The glow dimmed slightly as Kurt narrowed his eyes slightly.

“Vat is going on here, exactly, Lorna?” Nightcrawler asked plainly. For several long moments Polaris didn't speak. She knew what she needed to say but wasn't quite sure how to word it correctly, or where to start in the chaotic mish-mash of her thoughts.

“I swear I was only trying to be your friend.” she began, wetting her lips with the scotch, her tone suggesting that she wasn't at all sure she wouldn't get into trouble for what she was about to say. “ I could see you needed one, that the people who were your friends were letting you down. Believe me, I know what that looks like and what that feels like but...the things is... you've been a friend to me too. Probably the best friend I've had since when Jean and I were young and the only girls on the team....and.... God help me, I think I'm falling in love with you.”

“....vat?” Of all the things Polaris could have said that was probably the last thing that Nightcrawler expected. 

He still wasn't a hundred percent sure that he had heard her correctly when she continued, forging ahead before she lost her nerve. 

“I love the way you treat me as an equal and the respect you show me and, I love how I feel in your arms. But...I am so scared that I can't love you the way you should be loved. You are wonderful...” 

Her voice cracked but she fought back the lump in her throat chasing it away with a large mouthful of scotch. She was determined not to go another day without having said what she needed to say “... you deserve someone who loves every, single, little inch of you and, sometimes, I can't even do that for me.”

“I had no idea you felt this way.” Nightcrawler managed, completely bewildered by this turn of events. 

“That was kind of the point. You needed a friend so that's what I did my best to be, unconditionally, but I was so jealous of Amanda tonight! Rogue thought I was going to hit someone and, God knows, I might have!”

“At least you were jealous of the right person.” Kurt teased, making a joke and trying to coax a smile out of Lorna. She managed a watery smile and a small sniffle. His arm came around her protectively and Lorna snuggled further against him, fairly burying herself into him.

“I wanted to kill her.” Lorna admitted savagely. 

“I'm glad you didn't.” Nightcrawler replied conversationally and prompted a laugh from Lorna, despite herself.

“You can always make me laugh and you've never given me anything but honesty and... I think I love you for it. When you look at me I feel like I could do anything and when you tell me I'm beautiful... For a second I swear I believe it.”

“Why should you not? As you say, I have given you nothing but honesty and, you yourself said that you trusted me.” Kurt reminded her, polishing off the scotch in one quick mouthful and discarding the glass onto the bathmat. 

He used both hands to coax Lorna to turn in the still warm bathwater so that he could look at her.

Insecurity swam in her eyes and she clutched her glass to her chest, clinging to it like a life-line. So often she had been lectured, or told that she didn't really feel her own emotions that she couldn't help but be anxious that Nightcrawler would do the same. So many others had.

“Because I'm nuts, Kurt.”

“Polaris, I can accept many things. I can accept that you find my appearance confronting. Most do and most will. I can accept your fear of falling in love. Not with me but with anyone. I know that fear. Too often I have set my heart at unobtainable goals so that I don't have to risk losing it. But, what I cannot accept is the idea that you don't know how smart, funny, charming, brilliant, powerful you are. It hurts my heart that you cannot see how genuinely exquisite, inside and out, that you truly are.” 

Nightcrawler's voice seemed very deep Polaris felt herself catch her breath in sudden excitement when he took one her hands and drew it to his lips to kiss her knuckles gently. 

The tickle of the velveteen fur coupled with the softness of his lips on her skin sent a jolt through her. “One kiss, _frueline?_ For ze devil zat you love?”

Kurt's smile was that of Satan himself and Lorna was all too willing to be damned. She tossed aside the glass, scotch and all and flung herself against him, sending bathwater sloshing all over the floor. His lips found hers unerringly, arms enclosing around her body. 

Lorna responded enthusiastically, pressing herself against him tighter still. He tasted of the expensive scotch and she felt the kiss deliciously all the way down to her toes. Her arms twined around his neck, losing herself into the kiss and melting against him.


	15. And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

One kissed turned into another, which turned into several, which turned into Polaris straddling Nightcrawler in the bathtub, her hands fisted in his hair and his hands on her body. His touch was hungry and consuming. Polaris really hadn’t meant to be so ravenous but she loved him and he was a little too competent with his hands on her skin for her not to lose her damn mind.

Polaris closed her eyes against the velvet touch of Nightcrawler's fingertips dragging up her spin. His lips dragging along her neck before tracing her collarbone with his tongue then dipping into the valley of her cleavage. His hands slipped dangerously across her ribs, tantalizingly close to her breasts before diving down beneath the surface of the water again.

The floor looked like a small flood had occurred with the amount of water they had sloshed out of the tub although neither considered the sodden finery any sort of a priority.

Lorna'’s nipples were rock hard, her body glistened with drops of water which reflected the shimmer of moonlight as Kurt's mouth found her breasts languidly. His hands continued their submarine exploration of her body, caressing her hips, her thighs, the sweet curve of her ass.

Her body throbbed.

His fingertips teased up her inner thighs, tongue working on one nipple expertly giving a little tug that sent a jolt of pleasure through her entire body. Polaris writhed in the water. 

Kurt's hand continued up her inner thighs until finally coming to rest against her core. Polaris sucked in a ragged breath, collapsing against his muscular chest, face pressed into the velvet fur at his collar bones as his fingers worked against her pussy, teasing and rubbing. 

The motions were slow and gentle at first, so teasingly light that it could have been just the barest motion of the water itself. Then it became more insistent, stroking her netherlips and circling her swollen clit.

Soft moans, little more than whimpers slipped from Lorna's mouth. His touch was insistent, never releasing the pressure on her clit although he alternated how he touched her elsewhere. While one hand worked on her clit with a startling precision his other was free to roam, playing her body meticulously.  
A caress up her spine, a glancing kiss at her temple, there was never a moment for her to recover.

Her head was swimming, the warmth of the water, the sweet scent of the alcohol, the velveteen whisper kisses wherever her skin contacted with his indigo fur, and the magic of that hand at her core were all entirely too much.

He swirled the finger in a rapid series of circles which caused Lorna to grab the side of the tub, squeezing until her knuckles were white.

“Please…” the word sprang from her lips without her bidding. Her body bucked reflexively, sending a small wave over the lip of the tub where it cascaded down to the floor.

There had been no need to feign desperation, she could feel the need welling up between her legs, feel the way his hands turned her brain to mush. 

“You're beautiful, Lorna.” Kurt growled in her ear, his finger moving at a more rapid pace. His touch was adept, Lorna’s soft moans built into a gasping crescendo. 

His fingers kept up their torment until her body snapped back into motion, flailing and twitching. Another small tidal wave of bathwater sloshed over the side of the tub as she came hard.

It took Lorna a long time to come back down to earth, leaning against Kurt's chest and panting like a ship-wreck survivor.

She glanced around at the sodden floor and realized that at some point her powers had slipped and she'd destroyed the faucets of the bathtub and the sink, as well as cracking the marble of the sink when the plumbing beneath it warped under her magnetic assault.

"Oh!" Lorna blushed. "Sorry."

"Don't be. I love it." Kurt smirked, leaning over and snagging the bottle of scotch. Her antics had caused it to fall off the sink and into grabbing range. Nightcrawler couldn't reach a glass, however, and settled for sipping it directly from the bottle in a nonchalant manner, Lorna still sprawled across him. It pleased him to please her. He wasn't going to pretend for a second he didn't utterly enjoy the erotic ego boost of being able to make her lose control of herself.

"Don't look so smug." 

"I don't think I could if I tried." Kurt laughed, setting aside the scotch and kissing her hair. His eyes caught sight of the pink dress and couldn't help but chuckle a little. He blamed it entirely for his lustful antics towards Polaris. Oh, the fact that she was in love with him helped, of course.

As the Baroness Schraeder had said; _There's nothing more irresistible to a man than a woman who's in love with him._ That scandalous dress was certainly helping, however.

"You're not going to judge me for moving too quick, are you?" Lorna asked in a small, anxious voice. 

"Only if you promise not to judge me." Kurt coaxed her to tip her head back with gentle fingers and kissed her, reminding her that he was just as present at the scene of this "crime" as she was.

Kurt slid his hands under Lorna’s butt and stood straight up, lifting her easily and surprising Lorna with his strength. She wrapped her legs around his waist, clinging to him eagerly. She had no fear of being dropped, she simply had no desire to remove her body from his. 

“Bed?” Lorna asked hopefully between kisses.

“Bed.” Kurt agreed silkily, carrying her from the bathroom.

 

Pale, fleeting winter sunlight woke Lorna, causing her to raise a hand to shield her eyes groggily. 

She was momentarily confused by the existence of the sun-light. She never slept with the blinds pulled open.

“ _Guten morgen._ ”

That voice!

A smile came to her lips unbidden and she rose up on one elbow to look at the blue furred gentleman standing by the window, looking out over a freshly dawned New York morning.

Kurt turned away from the window, moving back to the bed and revealing he had gone to get a pair of hot coffees, leaving her to sleep in a little.

“I love you.” Lorna grinned, reaching for the coffee gratefully then realizing what she had said. “You don't have to say it back. I know you're just humoring me.” 

“Humoring you?” Kurt echoed, incredulous. “Did you think last night a Christmas favor?”

“Uhm... yes?” Lorna admitted, slightly confused to think that it wasn't. 

She didn't think it was an unreasonable conclusion to have come to. She was not so emotionally foolish as the equate lust with love and while Nightcrawler had said some very kind and loving things last night she also knew that hesaw her as a friend and treated her the same as he did anyone.

“Tsk. I would never.” Kurt scolded but his voice was full of rich affection, he climbed back into bed beside her, encouraging her to snuggle up to him so he could put his arm around her while they drank their coffees. “You could have any man in this place by snapping your fingers. Believe me, I'm not the one doing you a favor here.”

“I only want you.”

“And for that I am uniquely blessed and grateful! I'm not going to say “I love you” because we would both know its a lie but I do admire you. I care for you and desire you. If that is not the building blocks for love, I don't know what is.” 

Lorna sighed happily, resting her head on his shoulder and he kissed her green tresses lightly. She really hadn't had any plan or agenda when she had confessed her love. She simply needed to say it and whatever the outcome was, it was.She hadn't even had time to hope that he might feel at least a little of the same for her.

“Would it be awful of us to keep this secret for a while?” Lorna asked in a small voice, not yet raising her head. “I don't want to share you or our time together with anyone.”

“I am of a firm belief that a relationship this new does not need an audience in the form of our co-workers. Besides, I don't want to share you either.”

“I can be unreasonably possessive and jealous. I'm warning you now.” Polaris advised Nightcrawler plainly. 

She felt it best to put all her cards on the table from the start since she had managed to get herself a boyfriend for Christmas.Kurt didn't want to challenge her on her beliefs however he did momentarily quirk an eyebrow at her choice of the word “unreasonably”. 

He had to wondered if she was actually possessive and jealous or whether she had been gaslit into believing that she was by a pair of ex-boyfriends who gave her many reasons to be possessive and jealous with their neglectful behavior. 

“That is quite alright. I'm prone to be clingy.” Nightcrawler reassured her lightly and prompted a giggle from Lorna.

“Oh, we'll be a fantastic pair.”

“Ja, I rather think we will!” Kurt teased, and kissed her before she could grow pessimistic.


	16. The Neo!

The 2nd week of January dawned clear, but bitterly cold and with a pregnant promise of snow.

Its threats were lost on the dark skinned, white haired beauty known as Storm, who watched the Gold team running a training simulation in the Danger Room from a monitor in the Infirmary.

She wasn't generally prone to hyperbole but, as she watched the team bickering their way through the simulation she had to finally admit what she had known since before Christmas.

The Gold Team was, in fact, a shit-show.

Not professionally, of course. 

As a physical team they were all exceptional. Storm honestly doubted there was little they couldn't handle. 

They all knew their powers, and each others' abilities and trusted one another in the line of fire perfectly.

Personally, however, was a different story.

Iceman was alternating between being an obnoxious show off and pouting, depending on the proximity of either Shadowcat or Polaris to him at any point in time. 

This was putting him direct contention with Colossus, who had been increasingly hovering near Shadowcat. 

Shadowcat was, predictably, completely oblivious to the antics and tensions between her ex-boyfriends as she was too busy fussing over Nightcrawler, who answered all of her questions with “Ja” “Nien” or “I don't care” and clearly resented the fussing. For his part Nightcrawler appeared to have graduated from sullen to distracted, at least to Storm's eyes and she had known the furred, fanged and tailed man a very long time.

Sam was attempting to stay out of it, which was proving difficult as Iceman often dragged the younger mutant into the middle of conflicts between Bobby and Piotr.

Polaris, the only member of the team who didn't appear to be actively arguing with someone, was instead obnoxiously chipper and sarcastic in a way that only Lorna at her happiest truly could be.

 _I must be grateful that they are at least alive to be ridiculous_ – Storm told herself, her blue eyes straying to the unconscious. injured mutant whose bed she sat beside.

She may have her complaints about her team but at least they were all upright and on their own two feet. With the exception of Robert DaCosta, the entire Blue team was MIA and Storm had no idea if her friends were alive or dead. Sunspot had been gut-shot by an entity unknown and had almost completely bled out struggling to make it back to the Mansion to raise the alarm. 

He had managed to tell them that a Warclan of Neo had kidnapped Rogue and Gambit from their bi-monthly date-night. 

When the Blue team went to retrieve them they had walked into a trap.Psylocke had covered Sunspot's escape but Beast's whereabouts was unknown. 

Storm had instantly set every piece of tracking technology the Mansion had available to locating her missing friends, and set the Gold team to train against any members of the Neo that had been programed into the Danger Room to familiarize themselves with that groups' powers and moves. 

Nightcrawler, who had faced the Neo several years ago, had volunteered to run the simulation, surprising Storm as Kurt had not volunteered to do anything if a very long time. She had gratefully accepted as it allowed her to devote her attention to tracking the Neo. An alert to her left beeped sharply and Storm quickly turned her attention to her cellphone. They all had them, although they were rarely used for anything other than inter-Mansion gossip and occasionally sexting.

A singular message was displayed from Gambit; “Stormy” was all it said, along with a geo tag.

Remy had managed to send her, ever so fleetingly, his co-ordinates and Storm would not allow the Neo to kill him for it. 

She slammed her hand down on the Mansion wide alarm that would, unerringly, send her team into rapid deployment mode and sprinted out of the infirmary.

“Flyers, grab a team-mate and follow me. They're close and we go now.” Storm ordered. 

There wasn't even the luxury of time to load into the Blackbird in Storm's mind. She had seen what the Neo did to Sunspot. She wasn't going to risk another gut-shot X-Man if she possibly could.

As much as Polaris would have liked to have grabbed Nightcrawler she knew he could teleport travel with impunity and instead hefted Colossus easily into the air, shooting after Storm like a bullet.

“Hope you don't mind.” Shadowcat grabbed Polaris' shoulders but kept her body in phase so as not to add weight, or wind resistance. “Its faster that air-walking.”

Cannonball grabbed hold of Iceman and blasted after their team-mates.

“Not at all, you can tell me who the Neo are on the way.”

“They were an underground, secret group of meta-humans. They've been at war with Humans and Mutants since Ancient times. They had cells of Neo all over the World but between Magneto and the Evolutionaries and M-Day there was supposedly only a small handful left, maybe 6 or 7 with powers. Cyclops offered them sanctuary at Utopia and got told where to shove it. They've not been seen aside of small, street level raids on food warehouses since then.”

“Charming.” Polaris commented. 

She was actually glad that Kitty seemed to bear her no ill-will for their minor altercation on Christmas. Lorna vaguely considered apologizing for her rudeness but Kitty seemed content to never mention the incident again, which was quite fine in Lorna's books.

“Why they've resurfaced, or what they want with Rogue and Remy, who knows.” Shadowcat added.

“We will find out.” Colossus pronounced. 

“What do you make of that, boss?” Cannonball asked as the warehouse came into view. Someone, Rogue by the hand writing, had graffiti'd X-MEN BEWARE. STAY OUT on the exterior of the brick building.

“Shadowcat, Nightcrawler you're recon. Find the others and figure out why the Neo took Rogue and Gambit. Colossus, Cannonball, knock on the front, if they fail to answer, kick it in. Iceman, cover them. Polaris, we're going to let them know we're here.” At Storm's command rapid-chain lightning struck the building multiple times, shorting out all the lights and giving Shadowcat and Nightcrawler the cover of darkness to slip unnoticed inside. 

Iceman and Cannonball pounded on the front door and then stepped back to allow Polaris to literally hurl Colossus through the structure with the ease of someone dusting lint off their sleeve before swooping back into the sky as Sam followed Colossus into the building.

She landed easily on the roof, ignoring the now pouring rain and pressing her hands to the brick. The building may have been made of fired clay but the skeleton was steel rebar and she magnetized it, turning it into a giant rare-earth magnet and sending anything that was metal hurtling through the air to stick to the walls. Street debris flung itself into the building, a series of metal trash cans making a god-awful noise as they bashed themselves into the building.

No one inside the building could possibly be unaware of the X-Men's presence.

“Storm! Stop!”It was not the Neo who leapt from the building, flinging Iceman aside as if he were made of paper but Rogue. 

She was dressed in Neo attire and her face had been painted blue with woad. Her hands burst into flame and she sent a burst of it at Storm. “Y'all have t'LEAVE!”

Storm answered with a bolt of lightning, forcing Rogue to dodge and surge into the air to do battle. She left her back woefully unprotected and Iceman capitalized on it instantly, encasing Rogue in a block of solid ice and sending her crashing to the ground. 

“Keep her there.” Storm ordered Iceman and, landing with Polaris, entered the building. There was a soft explosion of air above them but otherwise everything was disturbingly quiet. “Report?” 

“Colossus has Beast.” Nightcrawler spoke from above them, invisible except for his eyes in the shadows. “There is 5 powered Neo, all teenagers.”

“Any idea what they want?”

“Rogue. Their Domina is dead and they think Rogue is her replacement. I believe they're holding Remy somewhere to keep Rogue in line.” The ground beneath their feet lurched suddenly and Nightcrawler grabbed hold of Polaris, teleporting her directly to the roof before going back for Storm. 

It was too late, however, the corridors and interior of the building had reshaped itself under the powers of one of the Neo. The internals of the building was an ever changing maze, preventing escape for anyone other than the Neo and Rogue, who had been able to get out when Colossus got in.

“ _Verdammt!_ I was too slow.” Nightcrawler cursed, teleporting in beside Polaris. “Storm could be anywhere in there by now.” 

They quickly moved down to ground level where Iceman had Rogue literally on ice, although it had not been an easy battle. 

The streets and gutters were half flooded with the results of Rogue's borrowed flame powers meeting Iceman's cryogenic powers. Colossus had managed to burst out of the building before it shifted, a winded and barely conscious Beast thrown over one shoulder.

“Can't... get out.” Hank was barely managing as Colossus lowered him gently to the ground. “Separated us and picked us off 1 by 1.”

“Be easy Beast, we know.” Nightcrawler replied. They were automatically looking to him to take command with Storm locked inside the Neo's strong-hold.

“Maybe we can barter. If they want Rogue they have to give us the others.” Polaris suggested.

“I have a feeling they are too desperate for that. They wouldn't have taken the entirety of the Blue team otherwise. Right, Hank?” Nightcrawler mused.

“Indubitably... they're young, they won't listen to logic.” Beast managed, clutching at his chest. He'd been beaten badly.

“Polaris...” Nightcrawler began, having to quickly swallow the “my love” that almost followed it, “if they do not like logic, perhaps a little insanity will be more their flavour. Bring the building down.”

“What?” Iceman gasped, looking at Nightcrawler like he had lost his mind but Polaris grinned in a less than sane manner and was already moving to follow the command. She normally hated being told what to do but when it was Kurt and he looked at her in just that manner before asking her to do something incredibly violent, well, that was an entirely different story.

“The others are still in there!” Bobby's protest went unheard. 

Vivid, intensely green the air around Polaris burned with a vicious looking aura as her powers sparked up, pushing beyond her day to day levels and drawing in strength from the very magnetosphere of Earth itself. The building creaked and groaned in protest as she began systematically dismantling the magnetic field around the building.

“He's fighting me.” Polaris observed as the building swayed and massive cracks began to appear in the brick-work. The Neo who could change the inside of the building was working to prevent Polaris from bringing the building down on their heads and Iceman instantly understood why Nightcrawler had told Polaris to destroy the building.

“Good. Then he will be too busy to keep the maze from changing.” Nightcrawler looked at Colossus. “Cover her. I'm going in for the others.”

“ _Da, toverishch._ ” 

The building was still dark thanks to Storm's handiwork but that made little different to Nightcrawler, who could see in the shadows as easily as he blended into them. He found Kitty first when she phased through the roof above him and dropped into the corridor. She was supporting most of Psylocke's weight as well as keeping her phased.

“Where are the others?” Nightcrawler asked, startling Shadowcat, who shook her head. 

“Red room. Gambit is in the red room.” Psylocke managed. “It was up the stairs but now I don't know.”

“I'll get her out and look for Gambit. I think the room shes talking about went through me earlier when everything first shifted.” Shadowcat offered, seeing the hole that Colossus had originally made down the corridor ahead of her. 

“Thank God.” Psylocke muttered, seeing daylight ahead and letting Shadowcat draw her out. 

Proving just how twisted and turned around the building had been under the powers of the Neo Kurt headed down, looking for a basement, or subterranean level and promptly found a room painted with red. 

As Psylocke had said Gambit was bound and gagged and under guard by a pair of Neo, including tall male who was struggling and straining, a blue glow emanating from the tattoo's on his body as he attempted to keep the building up. Seeing his chance Kurt teleported, snagging the Neo fluidly and teleporting again before he could react, dropping the Neo directly in front of Polaris who slogged him as hard as she could with her powers, knocking the Neo out in one brutal magnetic uppercut.

“ _Danke_. With me.” Nightcrawler grinned, quickly leading Polaris and Colossus back to the red painted room and discovering that Gambit had escaped his bonds and hit the second Neo with a chair whilst sh ewas distracted by her colleagues sudden disappearance.

“Careful, she heals quick.” Gambit warned, standing shakily on 1 leg, his other broken. 

“That is no matter.” Colossus murmured, lifting the teenager by the back of the her clothes and slinging Gambit over one shoulder as he had to Beast. 

“ _Merde!_ ” Gambit cursed, gritting his teeth against the pain but made no protest at the method of extraction. 

“I know where Storm is.” Polaris announced, discovering that she was able to sense Storm's lightning bolts thanks to the eletromagnetic energy they were releasing. “In fact, I think.....” Her powers flexed and warped and caved in the floor below them, dropping them directly onto the last three Neo that Cannonball and Storm had been doing battle with. 

Their entrance into the room knocked out a female Neo with distinctive red warpaint, snapping Sam out of the trance she had been holding him in.

“It's over. You're out numbered.” Cannonball blocked a blast of energy from one of the Neo who instantly leapt to cover his sister.

“It's never over!” The Neo howled, eyes burning with rage.

“Stand down and let us discuss this. I say again, there is no need for violence.” Storm ordered, pinning them against the wall with gale force winds.

“You'll have to kill us first!”

“That can be arranged.” Polaris commented, ripping a huge chunk of metal pipping out of the wall, fully prepared to strangle someone with it.

“Stand down, brothers. We are lost.” It was the female who spoke groggily from the floor and Nightcrawler thought he recognized her. She'd been maybe 7 or 8 when last they had crossed paths but then, as now, Nightcrawler remembered her to be a voice of reason.

“Elysia.”


	17. "You are both aware, I'm sure, that the Gold team has a strict no fraternization rule?"

Storm sat at the simple wooden table opposite Elysia, her arms folded beneath her breasts and a neutral expression on her features. 

Elysia, as eldest and defacto leader of the rag-tag band of Neo teenagers, had taken the only other chair not reduced to kindling by the battle with the X-Men.

Behind her her brother, Tatarus stood along with Maze, Flammbe, whose powers Rogue still wielded and the quick healing martial artist Verglace. At the window, staring moodily and contributing nothing was the final male Neo. He had declined to give his name and still swore he'd rather fight to their deaths rather than discuss things diplomatically.

Only Elysia's threats of letting Polaris strangle him: "She is Magneto's heir, you know her well capable of it!" had kept his mouth closed.

Polaris, along with Kurt flanked Storm to her right. Rogue and an injured but standing Beast stood behind Storm to her left.

Rogue had changed into her X-men costume now that the others had been rescued and apologized for attacking the others.

"Ah couldn't risk their hurtin' Remy more!"

All had been forgiven of course and all that was left was to decide what to do with the Neo teenagers.

“The amount I like it when you order me around is incredibly unbecoming, _Herr Wagner._ ” Polaris informed her boyfriend sotto-voice as the others discussed the Neo civil war that had driven the children to attempt to form their own Warclan in tense voices.

Kurt smothered a smirk with difficulty, turning towards her slightly, his voice dangerously low. "About as unbecoming as I find it when you speak German to me, Miss Dane.”

“Oh, you like that, do you?” Lorna purred. “I'll let you teach me it.”

“Promise?”

_“Jawohl._ ” She smirked, letting her green eyes linger on his saffron ones as she bit her lip.

Kurt broke eye contact before anyone noticed their exchange, struggling to bring his mind out of the gutter and back to the matter at hand.

It was an incredibly inappropriate time for flirting, after all.

Sunspot was comatose and Gambit had been tortured by the Neo. Storm may have been sympathetic to their plight but they still had to answer for their crimes against the Blue team.

The crux of the issue seemed to be the powers the teenagers wielded. Although other Neo survived Genosha and the Evolutionaries attacks most had lost their powers during M-Day, as mutantkind had. Each of the Warclan's that had survived now wanted to be the one that possessed the last 5 Neo children with powers.

Rather than see their Brethren destroy themselves Elysia and Tartarus had decided to start their own Warclan.

“Apart, our powers make no sense but melded together by a Domina, by her, we are unstoppable! It is our people only chance!” Elysia implored Rogue anxiously.

“No one is unstoppable. Ask the Juggernaut.” Rogue snorted, unmoved by this passionate speech. If they wanted her help they shouldn't have hurt her boyfriend or her friends.

There was an obvious solution, of course. The Neo teenagers could come to Xaviers where vast corridors of dorm rooms remained vacant after M-Day reduced the student population by the hundreds. Within those walls they would be protected from the adult Neo who sought to manipulate them and they could simultaneously learn to weave their powers together, as a Team, independent of a Domina.

Storm knew better than to suggest such a solution to teenagers, however, who would dismiss it instantly simply for it not being their idea.

They had to come to it on their own although Storm certainly loudly thought the idea several times, turning over the pros and cons in her mind, figuring that Elysia must have some telepathic powers in order to know a person’s “greatest fantasy” that she then projected with her illusion abilities.

She was rewarded for her deductions and efforts when Elysia wet her lips nervously as suggested;

“What if…. What if we took up residence…? Not with the X-Men but, near them?”

“Never!” the unnamed Neo by the window spat, whipping around and glaring hatefully at Elysia.

“We were willing to accept a _spike_ as our Domina, how is this different?” Tatarus scolded, always protective of his sister.

“She would become one of us! The Neo will never be like them!”

“Nor would they have to. We can be allies without losing that which makes us Neo. We need training, not schooling like children.” Elysia challenged. “The adults won’t risk incursions against the X-men. Twice now doing so has ended in our genocide. We will be safe to grow as our own Warclan there. With allies who want nothing from us. Can you name me anywhere else where this statement would be true?”

The male Neo clearly could not because he turned back to the window, muttering in an unknown language before adding;

“I’d rather sleep in a sewer.”

“I have slept in a sewer when I didn’t have to.” Storm commented lightly. “It did not make me a martyr so much as an idiot.”

Maze and Verglace exchanged small smiles between them at Storm’s statement as the white haired Goddess turned to the massive, dark blue furred man to her left. "I am certainly amenable to creating an enclave for these Neo at Xaviers but; it is not I who have been transgressed against. What say you, Beast?"

“I cannot refute Elysia’s statement with anything that is not bitter resentment.” Beast spoke slowly and with some effort. Every inch of him hurt but he was the Blue Team Leader, shattered and broken as it was, he refused to be carried home without seeing this to the end.

Kurt felt his mind wandering as they trio of Team Leaders discussed details. A glance out the window showed that it had started snowing, leading Kurt to shoot a small smile at his girlfriend.

“Want to ditch debriefing and take a walk when we get back?” He asked slyly and Polaris replied with a small, secretive grin on her own that went utterly unnoticed by the others.

“I’d love to.”

 

 

Thanks to Kurt's teleportation abilities the pair had retired to their rooms, changed into weather appropriate attire and were off to play hooky in the backwoods of the Xavier Estate before the rest of their team had even finished settling into the war room to debrief.

Without footprints left in the snow to track them and under the cover of the trees they would be devilishly difficult to find without employing the use of a telepath.

Lorna had put on her second favorite Affliction leather jacket and bundled up with fleece lined leggings, a cream coloured scarf and the sound of the fallen snow made a pleasant crunch under her winter boots.

Just enough snow had fallen to blanket everything in soft, shimmering white. The snow provided insulation for all sound just as the leafless trees still provided resistance to the wind, producing an ethereally quiet, and beautiful sanctuary for lovers to walk.

Lorna took Kurt's hand effortlessly as they walked, leaning into his side sweetly.

Kurt found himself deeply touched by the seemingly simple gesture. His hands, large for his 5' 11 height, were inhumanly shaped with only 2 over thick fingers and 1 thumb. They had given his previous girlfriends a moment of pause when trying to figure out how to hold his hand.

Most settled for tucking a hand into the crook of his arm instead, not that he, ever the Gentleman, had any issue with that whatsoever. But he had to admit he was impressed that Lorna had figured out a method to hold his hand comfortably and practiced it to the point of it being second nature in the short time they had been dating.

"You look good in leather." Lorna said, her tone admiring. He was wearing a much loved black leather jacket and the jeans he had been wearing the night of the margaritas and movies when he had also been using an image inducer. Then, as now, Lorna felt a palpable admiration for the way his body looked in the casual clothing.

Although this time it didn't give her a panic attack and send her scurrying for her closet.

Polaris couldn't remember the last time she had been so comfortable with another human being that the extended silence between them felt companionable, rather than uncomfortable. She was prone to babbling when nervous but there was no need to interrupt the romantic solitude. 

They had walked almost an entire loop of the trails that wound through the small woodlands at the back of the Xavier Estate before Lorna spoke.

"Its so beautiful out here." she sighed happily.

"I was thinking the same thing but I'm looking at a different view." Kurt commented, voice slightly flirtatious and when Lorna glanced towards him for clarification she realized he was looking at her.

"Oh!" She blushed prettily, looking away and Kurt kissed her cheek, prompting a giggle from her. She turned fluidly, catching him by the front of his jacket and pulling him into a proper kiss.

Kurt stumbled a little, having to brace an arm against a tree to avoid being pulled over by her enthusiastic embrace and he chuckled when they parted.

"I'm so caught off guard when we kiss." He confessed, his accent playing heavily in his deep voice.

"I'm sorry?" Lorna replied anxiously.

"Don't be. It's wonderful. It's been too many years since I felt like this." Kurt assured her, wrapping her up tightly in his arms and smiling down at her. Lorna put her arms around his waist in response, looking up into those gorgeously glowing eyes and, unable to help herself, asked;

"Felt like what?"

"Utterly starstruck." 

He leaned in to kiss her again.

"Ah-ha." Storm observed tonelessly, alerting the lovers that they had an audience of a very irritated Weather Witch. She had decided to take a fly to clear her head after finding that not only were two of her Team absent from mission briefing, they appeared to have exited the Mansion entirely without telling anyone where they were going. When she saw the splotches of blue and green through the trees from above she had realized that Nightcrawler and Polaris had irresponsibly, purposefully blown off debriefing for something was unimportant as a walk in the snow and was, understandably, angered by this. 

She dropped out of the sky to land before them gracefully, folding her arms beneath her breasts, her eyebrows arched almost to her hairline in consternation. "This explains your absences from mission debriefing and the sudden uptick in both your cheerfulness levels recently."

Lorna made as if to break apart from Kurt guiltily but his grip of her body remained firm. They were consenting adults who owed none else their commitments. In his opinion they had nothing to feel guilty about, no matter how much Storm seemingly disapproved.

Lorna smiled and melted back against him, an action not lost on Storm, whose scowl deepened and, seeing that neither felt the need to answer her added; "You are both aware, I'm sure, that the Gold team has a strict no fraternization rule?"

Kitty had asked Storm to implement the rule before joining a team that Bobby was also on, in an effort to keep Iceman's antics to a bare minimum.

Kurt and Lorna exchanged a concerned glance.

"I quit." they both spoke at the same time and promptly laughed at having surprised one another. 

Kurt turned to look at the now alarmed looking Storm.

"You.... quit?" She echoed in shocked tones. She could have expected such a stunt from Lorna but not Kurt. For all his libertine tendencies he had ever been one of the most stead-fast, loyal and responsible of the X-Men.

"I am sorry, Storm, but I am going to be selfish, just this once. I will not give up Lorna. Not even for ze good of ze team."

Polaris resumed her grip of Nightcrawler's leather jacket and thrust herself against him possessively;

"Where he goes, I go." She declared, adding savagely. "You'll pry Kurt from my cold dead hands."

"I did not know it was so serious. " Storm observed, rallying from her shock and deciding that Kitty's rule could hang itself if her friends were happy.

"Of course. I love her."

Lorna gave a soft gasp and, voice stolen, clung happily to Nightcrawler. She may not have had the breath to return the sentiment right at that moment but she had said it before and Storm could see the depth of her affection for Kurt in Lorna's green eyes.

It melted Storm's heart in an instant. Ororo had known Kurt a very, very long time and it gladdened her to see him happy. The more she thought about it the more she realized how well Kurt and Lorna would do together, where she was unsteady, he was calm. Where he was libertine, she was methodical but they both had an irrepressible passion that she had not seen nearly enough of, from either them, in the past few years.

Storm enveloped them both in a crushing hug. 

"Ignore me." Storm implored them. "Be happy together, my friends."

 _"Danke,_ Ororo. _Danke."_


	18. Literally, 12.

"This time, kick your legs at my face, not where you think my hands will be." Kurt directed with a broad grin, flashing inhuman looking fangs.

The fact that he was upside down, suspended from a trapeze swing by one foot and his prehensile tail, sailing through open air seemed to concern him not a whit to Lorna's eyes.

"O-kay." Lorna answered skeptically, still mostly convinced she was going to kick him directly in the face. She took a firm hold of her own trapeze swing and jumped lithely from the small platform.

Her body swung in a graceful arc and at the zenith of the swing she bent both legs at the hip, using all of her core muscles to literally fling her feet at her boyfriends blue face.

Kurt's hands were in place to grip her ankles long before her feet came anywhere close to his head and, as Lorna let go of her trapeze she swung again, this time held up only by Kurt's expert grip.

All of a sudden the next bar was right in front of her, hanging at the edge of its swing in open space and she could grab it with both hands as Kurt released her feet, allowing her to swing one last time and land gently onto the second platform, a good 20 feet from where she started.

She spun as Kurt swung in to land himself, a huge smile playing over her lips.

"I did it!" Lorna bounced happily, flinging her arms joyfully around Nightcrawler, who was more than happy to accept her celebratory embraces.

As someone capable of flight she hadn't expected aerial trapeze to be so fun but there really was something satisfying about feeling the bar hit her hands, knowing she got the timing just right.

She had fallen a couple times, which only made the satisfaction of succeeded all the sweeter.

"Again, _lieb_?"

Lorna considered it, but her lower back was starting to tighten up from the unusual amount of arching and core-work the acrobatics had called for. Kurt may have been as limber as a predatory cat but she was not.

"Nah, I need a shower and I'm sure you're itching to do a proper workout after amateur hour with me." Polaris said popping a kiss on Kurt's cheek and making him laugh. "Let's get some dinner when you're done though?"

"Sounds wonderful."

 

 

A hot shower restored Polaris' energy levels and she was just admiring her abs in the mirror after applying lotion when a knock on her bedroom startled her.

It wouldn't be Nightcrawler, he would still be working out and besides, he would simply teleport straight in. Their relationship was well progressed to that level by now. She had even moved one of her floor rugs to make a designated "teleport-in zone" beside her bed which she would always ensure had no debris in it for safe porting.

Lorna couldn't think of anyone else who would visit her at 5pm on a random Tuesday afternoon.

Rogue would be busy with Remy's physical therapy. His leg was mostly healed but the work of reactivating all the muscles that had been immobilized while his broken leg was cast from ankle to hip would take time yet. Especially since Gambit's end goal was to be back up on stage, singing and dancing as Marie Antoinette. 

Psylocke had accepted a Team request from Magneto, of all people. Sunspot was still convalescing from the multiple surgeries it had taken to repair his perforated intestines and Beast had thrown himself into rehabilitating the Neo teenagers since the Blue team had disbanded.

A Vampire and her toddler stood on Lorna's doorstep, surprising the green haired magnetist.

"I'm sorry to ask, Rachel normally gives Shogo his dinner when I have class but there's apparently some kind of psionic emergency with a student right now." Jubilee began apologetically, hefting Shogo's travel bag further back up her slim shoulder. "I tried Beast but he's busy and I couldn't find...."

"I don't mind." Polaris assured Jubilee, cutting off her nervous babble. Lorna held her arms out to take a toddler and his bag of things.

"Thanks. I owe you one." Jubilee's gratitude was palpable, she clearly hadn't expected Lorna to acquiesce so easily. Most people expected Lorna, who was known to have a low tolerance for stupidity, to dislike small children. 

In theory, it made perfect sense.

Children were loud and unreasonable and inconvenient, all behaviors Lorna loathed.... in adults.

Children, however, she loved and could forgive all their transgressions for the simple fact that they were children.

"Right then, some din-dins for Shogo." Lorna coo'd bouncing the toddler on her hip. His bag proved to contain all sort of useful things for this endeavor, including a collapsible high chair, fruit snacks, a nutritious dinner suitable for a child Shogo's age and a bottle of juice for him to nap with later.

When Nightcrawler arrived later via teleportation he found his girlfriend happily feeding Shogo cheerios and chocolate pudding.

"Not quite the dinner I was expecting." Kurt laughed, sitting down beside Lorna on cushioned trunk she had at the end of her bed. She had set the high chair up so that she could sit comfortably with Shogo facing her. 

"Jubilee said it was an emergency." Lorna's tone was apologetic but Kurt was unconcerned by this change of plans.

"She wouldn't have asked if it wasn't." he assured her. Nightcrawler had pulled babysitting duty more than once himself. When Shogo grew distracted Kurt pretended to steal his cheerios to coax the toddler into eating them. 

"You're good with him." Polaris observed, watching Nightcrawler interacting with the toddler.

They had been dating only a month and a half, and she almost held her tongue, feeling that the subject of children might be too deep, or meaningful for their so far easy-going and casual relationship. But, that impish impulsiveness that often got her into trouble lead her to ask in a soft voice: "Do you want kids, Kurt?"

Kurt sighed deeply, and looked down, making Lorna regret asking the question. Nightcrawler prevaricated, using the excuse of feeding Shogo to remain in reserved silence until he could collect his thoughts properly.

"I did." Kurt conceded, then smiled a small, disjointed sort of smile that Polaris couldn't recall ever seeing on his handsome features before. It was a little lost, and a little sad. "3 or 4, actually. My own little tribe of Wagner's but.... for many years now I have been unable to reconcile the idea of bringing children, who would undoubtedly at least partially resemble me, into a world that wants me and my kind dead."

Polaris released the breath she hadn't even realized she had been holding in a sharp, angry exhale. 

"God, this world is such bullshit!" Polaris seethed, angry that a human being as kind, and giving, and generous as Kurt would be denied valued and desired children solely because of other peoples prejudices. "We should not have to resort to Magneto levels of extremism to live our lives!"

It was a dangerous topic of conversation for the progeny of a pair of Mutant Extremists and Polaris had been known to declare that her "Father was right!" and that humanity should be wiped from the Earth to make way for mutantkind. Nightcrawler felt a change of subject was in order and quickly asked her;

"And you, _mein lieb_? Do you want children?"

"12." Lorna replied without hesitation.

_"Vat?!_

"Obviously I'd like to adopt at least 9 of those." Polaris clarified with a cheeky smile.

"Zat makes a little more sense." Kurt replied, relieved. Shogo was growing fussy, bored and full and Nightcrawler lifted him down from the highchair to toddle around Lorna's room.

She kept the abode neat as a rule, with everything in its place, so there was little for Shogo to get into trouble with. The worst he could do was attempt to climb the dressers, which was more amusing for the adults than dangerous for the child.

"I was an only child and my parents bickered constantly. I spent a lot of time alone in my room, thinking about a home and a family filled with all the love I didn't get." Polaris felt compelled to explain. She knew that wanting so many children was unconventional and she wanted him to understand that there was a perfectly logical reason for it. She had always been sensitive to anyone thinking her crazy. "When my Aunt and Uncle adopted me it just reinforced the idea of opening up my home to children who found themselves in the same situation that I had been in. What if my Aunt and Uncle hadn't been able to take me? An obviously mutant child! Can you imagine?"

"As a fellow adoptee, I well can."

"Oh! Of course! Margali!" Lorna gasped, realizing just how insensitive her words had been. 

Nightcrawler never spoke about Mystique, or his relationship to her, they all routinely forgot that the Mother he did speak of was an adopted one. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean..."

"Its alright, Lorna." Kurt soothed, drawing her in for a quick hug to reassure her before he had to break away to prevent Shogo from attempting to put the toe of a shoe into his mouth. "I am _vell_ aware I got luckier than many a mutant child in our situation has. I love _ze_ idea of adopting many and passing that luck along. I think it is as sweet an idea as its progenitor." 

"Flatterer." Polaris teased.

"Guilty!" Kurt laughed, swinging Shogo up and tossing him lightly onto the bed. The toddler instantly broke into delighted childish giggles, and held his chubby arms up to be tossed again.

Kurt was playfully determined to make an acrobat of the boy, with Jubilee and Shogo's full approval. 

Polaris rocked back on her hip, watching Kurt play with Shogo easily and found she could very easily imagine him as the Father of her children, both biological and adopted. She supposed it was just her hormones and the honeymoon period of the relationship talking but it was not at all difficult to picture a house full of blue and green haired children, teleporting about and manipulating everything metal in their path.

 _God, what if we had human kids?! No ones ever documented what happens when second generation mutants reproduce. Beast would have a fucking field day trying to logic out THAT genetic puzzle._ \- Lorna couldn't help but consider the possibility. 

The potential was there. Mystique and Sabertooth had beget a child with no x-factor mutation, after all.

_Kurt would just love them. Regardless of genetics and... I hope I would too.... I think I would. To do anything else would make me no better than Raven Darkholme._

Polaris wasn't at all certain of herself, and it made her uncomfortable. She felt saner than she had in years but she was also very aware she was not innocent of the same type of extreme thoughts that motivated her Father. The words may have been driven by humiliation and betrayal at being abandoned at the alter but it was still her mouth that had declared that humanity should be erased.

Feeling insecure she quickly crossed the room and buried herself in Kurt's arms. He wrapped her up in a tight embrace in an instant without question or hesitation.

"I love you."

"I love you too, _lieb._ "

"I didn't mean to eavesdrop, I swear, I was just looking to grab Shogo and the door was open and...and... How long.....?!"

Rachel spoke from the doorway, completely bewildered and Kurt and Lorna whipped around to realize they had a red-headed audience. Jubilee hadn't closed the door when she departed, no doubt thinking Polaris would want company in caring for Shogo. Rachel had been so certain that Kurt had been in deep depression for a long time. To see him exchanging I-love-you's with Polaris threw everything Rachel had been convinced of into question.

"We are not very good at being snuck up on." Kurt observed lightly.

"No, we really aren't." Lorna laughed and ran a hand through her green hair. "At this point we may as well just tell everyone and get it over with."

"So... this isn't a new thing?" Rachel couldn't help but ask able to deduce from their words that others had caught them in similar embraces and the relationship had been kept quiet for at least a month, if not more.

"Correct and you have been a terrible friend." Polaris announced, wagging a finger at Rachel. "Deciding how Kurt was feeling for him instead of listening to him!"

"I have not!" Rachel protested, floundering in the face of this all too accurate accusation.

"Oh yes you have!" Lorna lectured, reeling off a list transgressions against Kurt by the others, half of them were news to Kurt who had had a tendency to tune out when anyone started talking to him.

Polaris had wanted to ream someone a new asshole over the supposed Meggan situation since Christmas. Anyone who saw Kurt and Meggan and Brian laughing together would have to be deliberately obtuse not to see how much Kurt cared for both of them equally as friends and nothing more.

Polaris knew how invalidating and crushing it was to have her own thoughts and emotions dictated to her and she hated seeing the others do it to Nightcrawler. She had always respected his request to leave it alone in his personal space but this was HER room and Rachel had interrupted a very nice moment and therefore needed to be told a thing or two.

 _Unreasonably possessive... got it._ \- Kurt thought to himself, not inaccurately seeing Lorna's behavior as her subconscious way to mark him as her territory to protect and defend.


	19. INTERLUDE: Magneto and Mystique

Madripoor had never been known for its pub scene, more often than not the search for cheap, strong American or English beers were superseded by fruity cocktails, thumping base and techno music that dominated the club scene night-life.

Finding somewhere that served Guiness at the appropriate temperature could be difficult but, this being Madripoor, never impossible. Everything was for sale if you had the right kind of money in Madripoor. 

Especially information.

The redhead slinked into the dirty, half run-down Princess Bar and instantly commanded every set of eyes in the place. She was stunningly out of place. The red sequin body con gown and long, stick straight red hair spoke of a young woman on the prowl for the most glamorous date to escort her to the most happening club.

A piece of junk bar once owned by Wolverine close on 5 decades ago down a forgotten side street was not the place the find such a date but the redhead apparently hadn't been told that. Her green eyes narrowed and honed in on a target, hunched at the bar.

Bald, and broad shouldered the battered trench coat did nothing to hide the power or conditioning of the man's body to someone who knew how to look at a quarry.

She moved over to him gracefully, insinuating herself between him and the empty bar stool beside him to pose provocatively against the bar.

“Ugh.” Erik Lehnsherr expressed his disgust for his sudden drinking companion in one emotive grunt, not bothering the greet the woman.

“Aren't you going to ask me what I want?” The redhead simpered, smirking and batting her impossibly green eyes at the bartender, pointing at a brand of vodka in liue of ordering a martini.

“That would imply I care.” Magneto replied, annoyed, raising his pint to his lips and taking three large mouthfuls. He was here on business and she was blowing his cover. “But in the interest of making you go away faster, Raven, what do you want?”

“Our kids are dating.” Mystique purred, delivering her information with aplomb.

“And?” Magneto barely reacted, clearly bored.

“Really?” Mystique snapped, snatching her martini and downing it without any degree of propriety. She would have thought that warranted at least a moments pause on Magneto's part. 

“I suppose it makes sense.” Erik retorted blandly. “Polaris would be capable of generating the same magnetic barrier to counter-act Rogue's powers as easily as I would.”

“Not that kid. The other one.”

“Do you really get to claim that one as yours? You did pitch him over a waterfall at birth. ” Magneto drawled.

“Like you can fucking talk.” Mystique hissed.

“Takes a shit parent to recognize a shit parent and you, Raven, are the Queen of Shit Parents. Frankly, Nightcrawler had the best of you for being discarded. He is the only child you didn't destroy with your machinations, isn't he?” Magneto dragged Raven remorselessly.

She apparently felt it too as she slammed the martini glass on the counter and stormed out of the bar. 

Magneto chuckled to himself, and turned back to his beer, taking a long,victorious pull of the heavy malt beverage.

“The hell was all that about?” Psylocke asked, manifesting out of the shadows at Magneto's hip.

“Remind me to congratulate Lorna for dating a European instead of another idiot American when we get done here.” Magneto requested, rather than explain, making Psylocke narrow her almond shaped eyes at him suspiciously.

“There are no Europeans at the Mansion, except for Kurt, who is German.”

“Quite.” Magneto agreed, waiting for Psylocke to put 2 and 2 together.

“Nonsense.” Betsy muttered primly at the implication. “Kurt wouldn't give that psychopath the time of day.” 

Betsy had ever been a prideful woman and still resented how easily Polaris had disabled them all on the day of her failed wedding. Magneto utterly ignored Psylocke's pronouncement of his daughters' mental state, commenting lightly;

“I'll have to send Lorna some schnapps next time.”


	20. Beer! Redux

"Hey girl!" Lorna stuck her head around the open doorway of Rogue's room in an amusing imitation of how Rogue had greeted Lorna, months ago.

"Hey sugar!"

"What am I? Chopped liver?" Gambit joked playfully from his seat on the edge of Rogue's bed.

"Superfluous." Polaris shot back in much the same tone. She pushed the door further open, revealing that she was hand-in-hand with Nightcrawler, who was grinning at the good-natured teasing between friends.

Rogue took one look at her friends' clasped hands and squealed in delight.

"Eeeeeeeeeee!!!" She flew across the room to carefully hug Lorna. Then gave Kurt a carefree, crushing hug.

Rogue had always considered it something of a cruel joke on Fate's part that the 1 human being that she had a hard time making skin-to-skin contact with thanks to his dense, indigo coloured fur would be a man that she considered her blood brother.

Short of grabbing Kurt by the spade tip of his blue tail, where the fur was sparse enough for contact to be made, or french kissing him, he was protected from her adsorption powers by his physiology.

"Y'all are goin' t'have t'come t'me f'r hugs." Remy drawled. He had been upgraded to a walking brace and cane for his healing leg but getting up and down was still difficult for him and caused jagged spikes of pain if he wasn't careful.

He was no less happy about this turn of events than his girlfriend, however and treated Lorna and Kurt to crushing hugs to prove it. It had not been difficult for Gambit to deduce that Polaris was sweet on Nightcrawler after her venom towards Amanda at Christmas but it had been harder to tell Kurt's feelings towards Lorna.

The blue furred teleporter was a known flirt. Especially when it came to exceedingly powerful woman whose beauty could be considered "unique", or left of center. Lingering looks and kissed hands were not always an ideal indication of interest levels when it came to Nightcrawler.

"So, who else have you told?" Rogue asked conversationally.

"Storm and Rachel found out by accident but you and Remy are the first people we've told by choice." Lorna explained.

"You're the closest family I have. We both thought you deserved to hear it from us, Rogue." Kurt added, and was promptly given another hug by his "sister" that knocked the wind out of him.

"Y'all are just...." Rogue sniffed, touched deeply by this; "...too fuckin' sweet!"

"Hows about a drink? Its been a while since we've all been to the local?" Gambit suggested, struggling to his feet and earning himself smiles from the others, who heartily agreed with this suggestion.

Lorna had not been looking forwards to doing the round to update everyone of her and Kurt's relationship status but a nice evening at the pub, where everyone could simply observe them together and draw their own conclusions, sounded like a very good alternative.

"I'll round up the others." Kurt offered with a grin, sauntering over to the intercom system that all the bedrooms were equipped with.

They weren't used often, but when they were it was often to devastating effect. With a cheeky smirk Kurt lazily depressed the system-wide button and relayed a very simple message to all and sundry currently occupying the adult side of the Mansion.

"BEER!"

 

"Fuck. Really?" Bobby asked, watching Polaris settled herself happily in Kurt's lap, one of his hands curling comfortably over her thigh.

"Whatcha drinking?" Lorna asked, helping herself to Kurt's beer for a taste.

"Lager."

"Ew."

"Drink your own zen." Kurt teased, using his prehensile tail to reclaim his beer.

Their easy interactions stabbed Bobby in his gut. He knew, logically, that his and Lorna's time together had passed but the chemistry between Nightcrawler and Polaris made it devastatingly concrete.

Bobby had forever been walking on eggshells when he dated Lorna. She was so insecure and hair-trigger that the slightest thing would set her off. As much as Bobby had loved her he always did find dating her to be emotionally exhausting as she demanded a level of care and attention that he didn't even know how to give himself.

Nightcrawler, however, was a true extrovert, with a seemingly endless supply of attention and compliments and reassurances to flatter Lorna, who was happy to receive Kurt's constant, relentless presence by her side.

They worked. They clicked.

And they broke Bobby's heart.

"Really." Rachel confirmed, seeing no one else would and patting Bobby's shoulder consolingly.

"Fuck me. I already get the "gay" rumors. This ain't gonna make it better." Bobby snorted selfishly into his beer. "First fucking Northstar, then Jean-fucking-Grey. Fuck."

Northstar's ill advised crush on Iceman several years ago, coupled with Bobby's own incompetence with the ladies had fueled the rumors. When the younger, time displaced Jean Gray had diagnosed her era's younger Iceman as gay, it had only pushed the rumors to a crescendo.

"No offense t'Jeannie..." Rogue spoke carefully, knowing Iceman to be sensitive to the subject and able to presume he would be even more so right now, seeing Kurt and Lorna together. "..but Ah really don't think y'all should be takin' sexuality advice from a 14 year old, Bobster. Ah don't care if she is a telepath."

"Right? She probably hasn't even found her clitoris yet." Lorna retorted crudely, eager to shut Bobby up. It was poor form of Bobby to make any kind of implication that Lorna and Kurt as a couple was in any way about him. She wasn't particularly interested in listening to Bobby have a pity-party. 

"Human sexuality is such a strange and misunderstood evolution." Hank rumbled, eager to reassure his friend. "The stringent labels that Western Culture tends to force sexuality into is woefully and willfully lacking in expressing the true scope of variety that exists."

"I think what Hank is trying to say is "everyone's a little bit gay." " Jubilee translated.

"I don't buy that." Bobby challenged, taking a mouthful of beer and looking at Jubilee defiantly but the Vampire was unimpressed by his display of machismo.

"Of course you don't. You're too repressed." Jubilee shrugged. It wasn't worth the argument to her, she was just there to drive their drunk asses home since Sunspot had gladly volunteered to watch Shogo for her.

"Just cos you don't buy it don't mean y'all might not be bisexual, Bobby. Y'all can be attracted to both genders but prefer ladies. Ah know plenty o'people like that." Rogue put in, picking up where Jubilee let off.

"Like who?" Bobby scoffed in a condescending tone of voice, and was surprised when 3 hands at the table instantly and unrepentantly went up.

"Don't mistake me for straight just because you've never seen me date a girl." Rachel wagged her finger at Bobby, her tone scolding.

"Did anyone really not know dis?" Gambit asked. The notches in his head-board included males. He figured it was common knowledge, he was an equal opportunity flirt, after all and made it a point never to suggest something he wasn't perfectly willing to do.

Bobby turned to the owner of the third hand and looked at the blonde man who, until this point, had been silently drinking a lager and not feeling the need to contribute to the conversation.

"I ain't afraid to admit I've seen some pretty men out there and my feelings towards them weren't platonic." Cannonball stated plainly. "There's a different between appreciating a piece of art and wanting to push a guy up against a wall and fuck him senseless."

"Samuel Guthrie! What would your dear sweet Mother say if she heard you talk like that!" Bobby teased, recovering quickly from his shock.

"Probably "Ah don't care if y'date a guy, Sam. Jes so long as he ain't a Republican!"" Sam mimicked his Mother's voice perfectly, causing laughter at the table. They were all familiar with Mrs. Guthrie and her particular mannerisms.

 

Lorna had figured that the news of her relationship would reach less than supportive ears sooner or later, however she hadn't expected to return from their evenings fun to find Alex Summers standing in the front Common Room, visiting with Kitty and Piotr.

“Lorna!” The blond's look of relief upon seeing her was not at all mimicked by Lorna, who scowled deeply to see her ex-boyfriend.

“What do you want?” She bit out unpleasantly, startled by his sudden reappearance. Their parting hadn't been on bad terms but Alex always did have a nasty habit of showing up when she was happy and raining on her parade.

“A word.” Alex replied firmly, stepping towards her and grabbing her elbow. There was no way his words could possibly be construed as a question, or a request. The demanding grip on her arm made that abundantly clear.

“Excuse me!” Lorna yanked her arm free, eyes flashing with anger as Nightcrawler stepped gracefully in front of her, positioning himself between Polaris and Havok in one fluid movement. 

Kurt's expression was neutral, arms folded across his chest, rocking back on one hip and behind him Lorna smirked at Alex, green eyes flashing with fire. She didn't need Kurt to protect her, she was more than capable of hurling Alex through a window if desired but Polaris loved that she didn't have to be the one to fight for herself anymore.

She wasn't a damsel in distress but it was oh-so-nice to be treated like a Lady from time to time.

“Lorna. I just want a word in private.” Alex scolded, as if she was a child. He cast a glance at Nightcrawler and realized the teleporter was taller than he remembered, a by product of Kurt's tendency to crouch, and perch but when standing fully upright he was actually 5'11, rather than the 5'7 most guessed him at.

Lorna, like Kurt, said nothing, figuring that Alex would figure out that he should probably ask nicely instead of being a prick about it sooner or later. The others present biting their tongues and wondering if they should intervene before violence erupted. Most trusted Kurt, easily their most diplomatic member, to defuse the situation if needed.

Seeing that his current tack would get him no where, and his pride stung by the fact that neither Kurt nor Lorna would answer him an ugly sneer crossed Alex's normally handsome features and he finally acknowledged Kurt, spitting:

“Yeah, well at least you got her used.”

“Only the 1st two inches, after that, brand new!” Lorna shot back defiantly and heard Jubilee mutter; 

“oh! Savage!” somewhere behind her.

“You need some ice for that burn. Alex?” Bobby offered.

“I'm not going to fight you, Alex.” Nightcrawler spoke in tones of practicality. “Lorna is human being capable of making her own choices. She is not a prize to be lost or won. The only thing that can be lost here is the respect of our colleagues and you are achieving that spectacularly without any help from me.”

“Scared?” Alex sneered, almost predictably, earning himself rolled eyes from Lorna.

“You're an idiot. Why would Kurt fight a battle he's already won?” Lorna replied. She stepped forwards, looping her arms around Nightcrawler's neck so that she could be teleported easily. “ _Wollen Sie mich bitte zu Bette bringen_?”

“ _Jawohl, mein leibe._ ” he slid an arm around her waist and with a final, disapproving glare at Alex the pair disappeared with a loud implosion of air.

The significance of Lorna speaking German was not lost on the room. Others may have had her time, her heart and her emotions but her mind was a precious and closely guarded thing. Understandably, given how many times it had been corrupted, manipuated or out-right stolen from her.

Yet she had willing given a piece of it to Kurt to learn his language, and was doing so at a rapid pace. There was no other reason she would have taken to learning German other than for him.

"Y'know Alex, Kurt may be too much of a Gentleman to clean yer clock for that "used" comment, but Ah'm sure as shit not." Rogue announced, pulling her gloves tighter onto her fists.

"Yeah, me either." Shadowcat spoke from behind Alex and it suddenly occurred to him that he was surrounded on all sides by pissed off X-Women. Rachel had her arms folded beneath her breasts and was glaring at him, eyes promising a slow and painful death while Jubilee, despite her diminutive size, managed to look malevolently hungry.

"You know, I don't fancy witnessing a murder. Shall we go.... elsewhere?" Bobby suggested to Hank and Piotr equally.

"Da." Colossus rumbled. 

Hank patted Alex's shoulder consolingly before the 3 of them disappeared as quickly as possible, dispensing one piece of important advice.

"Run."


	21. Inhale in. Exhale Out.

"Ugh, that guy!" Lorna snorted in annoyance. She took off her jacket, leaving her clad in only a simply white tank top and black mini skirt before kicking off her high heeled shoes to stomp over to the vanity in her room to pick up a hair brush and run in through her green locks angrily.

She wanted to hurt Alex but had wisely asked Kurt to remove her from the situation before she could and she certainly wasn't going to take her rage out on her beloved Nightcrawler. Therefore, herself was the last option available for violence.

She raked the brush through a particularly vicious snarl. "He's such a .....a ...."

"Summers brother?" Kurt suggested gently. He watched her brushing her hair, busying himself removing his own winter coat and shoes.

She was creating more knots than she was removing. 

Others in his situation would have attempted to make her stop, either by taking her wrists, or trying to wrestle the brush from her. Nightcrawler had been raised around enough volatile women to know it was pure folly. And he knew Lorna well enough to know it would only serve to make her angrier, making her feel as though her emotions were being dictated to her once again.

Instead, he picked up a length of her green hair on the opposite side from where she dragged the metal toothed brush through her hair and began to gently unpick the tangles with graceful fingers.

After a few moments Lorna ceased her torture of her own hair and leaned into the pleasant sensation of having someone else play with her hair. Kurt was able to coax the brush from her slack fingers.

He didn't begrudge her her anger, or try to talk her out of it. He simply did his best, with his presence, to stop her from harming herself in her rage.

"I hate how much I hate him, when I once cared so deeply. It makes me feel like a basket case." Polaris spoke softly, a deep vulnerability in her voice. Then met Kurt's eyes in the mirror that they were positioned in front of and added imploringly; "I know you understand."

They had spoken of his ex-girlfriend Cerise before and how conflicted Kurt had felt when he discovered someone whom he loved so deeply had sent a spaceship full of innocent people to their deaths for the crime of the ships' Captain. Making herself judge, jury and murderer in one go.

"I feel a vast amount of pity for Alex Summers. And Scott." Kurt replied factually.

"Pity? Why?"

"Until the day I left Germany Margali never once treated me as anything other than her beloved son. If nothing else I can say I was raised by a parent who loved me. The best Alex or Scott can say is that their parents abandoned them for a 30 year Star Wars LARP."

Lorna sniggered with laughter and, seeing that Kurt was setting down the brush affixed him with a cheeky grin.

“What, not going to braid it for me?” she teased, gently poking fun at his performing such a feminine task as brushing her hair for her.

“I could.” Nightcrawler grinned right back, flashing wicked looking fangs, completely comfortably in his sexuality. “I can’t imagine it would be that different than braiding ropes to make safety nets in ze circus. Perhaps it would stop your locks attempting to strangle me in my sleep.”

Lorna laughed at that, turning fluidly to twine her arms around Kurt’s neck. Her hair was as prone to be unruly as she was and Kurt had woken up with a face full of the green, wavy strands more than once.

“Deal with it.” Lorna growled, pushing him against the wall and kissing him hungrily.

“Gladly.” Nightcrawler replied between kisses. He was far more agile than she, and stronger too, easily able to flip their positions so that it was her trapped beneath him and not the other way around. 

Polaris responded enthusiastically, wrapping her arms around his neck and sucking invitingly on his tongue.

Kurt’s hands, oddly shaped but nimble, found her hips before sliding around to cup her pert backside. Unsatisfied one gripped a thigh hard enough to leave 3 fingertip shaped marks and hitched her leg over his hip so that he could press himself into cloth covered core.

Lorna ground her hips against him encouragingly and was rewarded when Kurt growled, low in his throat and pinned her hands above her head with one hand. Her legs were shaking and she might have lost her balance were not for Nightcrawler’s weight pressing her into the wall.

His mouth left hers to kiss down her neck, leaving Lorna breathless and panting with desire. She cried out softly in a startling mix of pleasure and pain when he bit down on her neck with just enough force to send a shock of conflicting sensations through her.

Lorna’s breathy exclamation spurred Nightcrawler on dangerously. He wanted to hear more. He wanted his hand between her legs, teasing her and arousing her whilst watching her blush and bite her lip. He wanted her feel her heat and her wetness on his fingertips and know that her reaction was for him.

Lorna tugged for freedom of her wrists and was instantly given it. She kissed him until breathing became a dire necessity and she was sure her lips would be bruised in the morning.

Lorna’s hands roamed where her lips couldn’t, tearing off the simple black t-shirt he wore and exploring the planes of his muscles across his shoulders, back and hips, grabbing his butt several times and his tail as well. It pleased Kurt that Polaris paid attention to every inch of his anatomy. He had known plenty of women who, although they were not repulsed by his tail, they were certainly content to ignore its existence.

Lorna, however, treated the prehensile appendage as she did the rest of him, as something unique and valuable to be loved, touched and petted.

"Bed." Lorna demanded, emerald eyes over-bright with excitement, pressing her hands against his chest and backing him up across the room until the bed hit the back of his knees and Lorna could playfully push him onto the bed to straddle him, her mini skirt riding up until is was barely a belt and exposing her thong.

She felt breathless and wild as she touched her hands to his stomach to his velvet covered abdominal muscles. She leaned forwards with a bold smirk to press her mouth against his neck. Her lips traced a line down, across his collarbones as her hands moved up, exploring the planes of his ribs.

Kurt was hard as Hell, he knew she could feel the bulge in his jeans pressing against her inner thigh. Lorna reached for his belt and the fly of his pants eagerly. She had managed to remove the belt and undo his fly before Kurt caught her arms at the wrists, pulling her down and flipping them again using his weight to crush her onto the bed, pinning her hands above her head.

He kissed her ravenously, never letting her quite catch her breath, or equilibrium. Lorna responded in kind, heart pounding in her chest and body arching into Kurt’s wantonly. 

It amused Nightcrawler that, in bed, Polaris was the very opposite of her normal personality. He wondered briefly if her willingness was reserved for him alone, or if she had always been submissive.

She certainly enjoying being man-handled and pinned down as much as Nightcrawler enjoyed being forceful with her. His tastes had always run towards the dominant so he was fully enjoying Lorna’s compliance.

He looked down at her.

The length of her green hair was fanned across the pillows. Her cheeks were flushed and lips sexily pouted from their kissing and her breasts, straining against the fabric of her tank top, were rising and falling quickly with her panting.

She couldn’t have looked sexier if she’d tried in Kurt’s opinion.

"Well, you've got me. What are you going to do with me?" Lorna challenged, breathlessly

Lazily he raised one hand and tugged the front of her tank top down, baring her full breasts to the night as she had declined to wear a bra that evening. 

The dusky rose nipples, already hard with arousal contracted further at the sudden chill. Kurt lowered his head and sucked one into his mouth.

“Aah” Lorna whimpered, green eyes closing, savoring the sensations rippling through her.  
Kurt shifted on top of Lorna, lying so that their bodies once again contacted with each other, his legs falling between her splayed ones.

Still laving and sucking the nipple until it was as hard as it could possibly get Kurt raised his head to admire his handiwork. Satisfied he turned his attention to the other and gave it the same treatment, making Lorna writhe and squirm.

Kurt had to hiss in a mixture of pleasure and intense sensitivity as her movements caused his hard length to press into the heat at the apex of her thighs. Even though his jeans and her thong it was scorching.

Kurt kissed Lorna again as she dragged her nails lightly across his back and shoulders.

Lorna hitched her leg over his hip again, making Kurt groan softly as she dragged her tongue down his neck, nipping gently and arching her back, pushing her breasts up against his chest.  
Her hand dropped between their bodies to push his jeans down, using her feet to shove them entirely off him.

She ground her hips against him, encouragingly, silently asking him to fill her then and there.  
Kurt kissed her, trying to get her to slow down. Lorna broke the kiss to latch her teeth into his shoulder.

Kurt grunted hoarsely in a mix of pleasure and pain as she raked her nails up his back again, this time a little harder.

“Kurt, please, please.” she murmured, kissing his neck “I need you, Kurt, please, I love you.”

Begging.

He couldn’t resist begging and she knew it.

It was the most mind consumingly erotic thing he had ever encountered.

He grabbed her thong with one hand, ripping it easily off her and finding her slick entrance with the tip of his cock.  
With one hard, sure thrust he drove himself home and Lorna cried out, arching her neck back into the pillow:

“Aaah, Kurt!”

He quickly started to move within her, gripping her butt with both hands for leverage and fervently pumping in and out of her.

Lorna locked her legs around him, bucking her hips and struggling to keep from screaming.  
Last thing she wanted to do was wake the entire floor but she wasn’t sure she could help herself. 

Lorna pressed her mouth against Kurt’s shoulder sucking and licking as he railed into her hard.  
When he pulled almost all the way out to shove back inside her body roughly she shrieked, fingernails clawing into his back hard enough to leave welts.

Kurt hissed in pleasure and pain as Lorna rocked against him, biting his shoulder.

Her aggressiveness brought out his own and without warning he pulled out, forcing her to flip over quickly and reentering her from behind.

“Ah! Yes… Kurt…” Lorna whimpered, loving every agonizing thrill the new position wracked her body with.

Her nails tore at the bed sheets.  
Kurt’s sharp hip bones pressed into Lorna’s round bottom as he fucked her.

A delightfully perverse thought occurred to him. She'd mentioned liking the idea of being spanked once but never having trusted her former partner enough to ask for her to request it. It had been such a throw away comment that it had slipped from his mind. But now, in the moment it occurred to Nightcrawler that her mentioning it, coupled with her emphasis on how much she trusted him, was the Lorna equivalent of handing him a notarized request. 

He couldn’t resist, lifting his hand and letting it fall against her backside with a satisfying “thwap”

“Oh!” Lorna gasped at the sudden stinging pain that lanced through her, mingling with the vivid delight burning in her from Kurt’s hard length being buried inside her.

The feeling of pain and pleasure in unison was exquisite.

“More?” Kurt asked, all the while thrusting in and out of her. Lorna nodded, clinging to the pillow desperately. Her enthusiastic consent was intoxicating.

He pulled his thick length almost all the way out of her wet, grasping pussy before thrusting hard back inside her right as his hand fell.

Lorna screamed his name so loudly he could hear it through the pillow.

No one had ever spanked her, not even as a child, she had never done anything bad enough to warrant the punishment.

Then Kurt spanked her again and she couldn’t think at all, whimpering and moaning his name into the pillow.

Kurt repeated the movement until Lorna’s body was shaking, her inner muscles contracting along his cock as she neared release.

He grabbed her hips for leverage, speeding up his pace.

"Kurt… Kurt.. yes! God, yes!"

Lorna's body locked up, twitching and clenching has orgasm rushed through her.

Kurt knew exactly how she felt, he wasn’t far off himself. He tried to fight it down but she was too hot, writhing against him and mewling his name desperately.

With an almost feral growl Kurt came hard into Lorna’s shaking, arching body.  
Stars spun gloriously behind his eyelids and the world faded away to a pleasant black numbness.

Lorna barely had time to come down off her high before she felt Kurt’s thick length throb inside her and the hot splash of his cum sending after shocks rippling through her.

For several seconds they were both still and silent, desperately panting for breath Lorna still had her face buried in the pillow to the point Kurt wondered if she could breathe.  
He was sincerely glad for his fur, which covered all manner of sins so that he would never have to explain the claw and bite marks Lorna had left on him.

He flopped, boneless and languid onto the bed, basking in the after glow as Lorna snuggled up to him sweetly, turning into a burying animal and getting a physically close as she could before heaving a delicious, satisfied sigh.

"You're welcome." Kurt chuckled, kissing her forehead tenderly, then realized that the only light coming in was from the window, and that he was reasonably certain they hadn't quelled the lights on entry to the room. "I think we destroyed another lamp."

"Don't sound so smug."

"Lorna, my love, I couldn't if I tried."

 

END.


End file.
